


Let's Play: Demigods and Monsters

by achievementdemigods (Taymatoes)



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Camp Half-Blood, Gen, everyone is teenagers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-05
Updated: 2014-10-08
Packaged: 2017-12-22 13:21:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 50,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/913674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Taymatoes/pseuds/achievementdemigods
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Six demigods are thrown into the adventure of a lifetime when a prophecy calls for them to complete the six trials of the Golden Pillar to receive the rings of Alecto. Seems simple enough. However secrets are being kept and lies told. How long will it be before they come crashing down on the boys?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Under the Radar

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by this great piece of fanart: http://achievement-city-bitch.tumblr.com/post/57254635219/because-i-want-a-halfblood-au-and-then-it-turned

The morning was hot; the thick mats of dark hair on his legs were already dripping with an all-too-salty mixture of sweat and seawater. The grumpy satyr wanted to shove his hat back onto his head to muffle the shouts and general noise that radiated from the camp on the horizon, but it was just too fucking sweltering for that. Sometimes he wished he were back in Texas. At least there, when it was a thousand degrees, its bitch of a girlfriend 90% humidity didn’t accompany it.

After a long pause mid-step and a resignation that he didn’t have a better option, the dark-haired satyr waded into the water again. He decided the salt trapped in his hair was better than the heat. For a moment the cold water was a relief until it started to shimmer to life around him.

“GUS, I THINK YOU JUST BLINDED ME.”

The voice made the satyr stumble backward in the water and lose his balance, soaking him up to his neck. After a moment of struggle, Gus was able to right himself and the water stilled, allowing the image to settle into a familiar face.

“There will never be enough alcohol in this world to bleach my brain.” Burnie continued to moan, a hairy arm draped across his face in his typical dramatic fashion.

Gus was caught between laughing and screaming, so he smirked instead. “What’s the news?” There wasn’t time to mess about when it came to demigods. Burnie had been out for weeks with a group of Searchers tracking down the newest batch of demigods. The weeks had gone by in a constant stream of new campers. However, it had slowed to a trickle over the last few days.

“Well,” Burnie drew out the word as long as his breath allowed. Already not a good sign. “I know we’ve gotten better at finding kids at adaptable ages, but it seems that two have slipped past our radar these last few years.”  
If Gus could see Burnie’s hooves, they would be kicking the dirt. Gus had to bite onto the inside of his cheek to keep from yelling.

“And how long have they been ‘past our radar’?”

“The one was simple enough to find. England, some British kid named Gavin. His mother was killed about a year ago by an ‘arson’ but you and I both know that’s bullshit. He’s in boarding school on inheritance. I already sent Matt after him.”

Burnie was still hiding something. Something that Gus knew he didn’t want to know. “You said two,”

“I’m getting there. This one is going to be tougher to find, but I think I have his scent.” Burnie fidgeted.

Gus was getting mad now. “There’s more to this kid than meets the eye, isn’t there?”


	2. The Failed Son

A thick, high-quality raincoat protected his perfectly ironed designer suit. Manicured fingernails were wrapped tightly around the leather briefcase that he probably bought with his Christmas bonus about six months ago. A jet-black watch was wrapped tightly around the wrist that he raised into the air as he stepped into the puddle-filled street, trying to flag down a taxi. The motion proved that the raincoat did not fit as well as the man had believed, as it rose above his waist and exposed the pocket of his slacks.

He didn’t feel the thin, crafty fingers slip inside and take his wallet. The man would not notice its absence until he went digging for it, a block away from his condo, to pay the taxi driver. It had been replaced by a thin slip of cardboard with ‘sorry.’ scrawled across it in messy handwriting.

The thief was quick to get away from the scene of the crime. He kept his pace steady to avoid unwanted attention, but he weaved through the crowd until the well-dressed man was out of sight and there was a dark alley inviting him in. It was doubtful that any repercussions would come from his pickpocketing; the police weren’t good enough to track a wallet, no matter how rich the owner.

The wallet flipped open, the soft leather brushing against the boy’s fingers as he searched the contents. There was about one hundred in bills that he quickly pocketed. They would feed him for a week. The rest of the pockets only consisted of plastic cards that were useless to the young, hungry thief. Money was almost untraceable in small amounts. Credit cards, ID’s, and insurance cards were a whole different story.

With a sigh of longing, the boy pitched the wallet into the nearest dumpster. He never kept them; it was a piece of evidence that did not need to be on him when his inevitable arrest finally arrived. It was an inevitable fact of the streets that one day, you were going to get caught. Even the best slipped up at some point and this kid was hardly the best.

Rain continued to fall from the sky in sheets, thoroughly soaking the boy through his hoodie. He shivered and tried to pull the hood over his dark hair, but that only proved damp and uncomfortable. An intense humidity accompanied the downpour, and despite the cold, he had the sleeves pushed up around his elbows, showing off the tattoos that covered his forearms.

Under the dark circles, the lines on his face, and sunken cheeks, the boy was too young to be wandering the street. He was hardly older than sixteen yet bore signs of age. He was a kid that had seen too much in his short years. The only feature about him that seemed bright were his eyes, an icy blue that stood out against his sallow features.

His stomach growled as he pocketed the money, heading out the other end of the alley toward the next street. The next street vendor was going to get a rather haggard customer.

A fluttering noise over his shoulder brought the boy to a halt. There was scattering of stones and trash, then followed by quick, light footsteps toward him. The thief whirled around to face a woman. She twitched with each step, beady black eyes focused on him. She hissed something under her breath as she advanced, and the kid couldn’t help but stumble backward, his heart fluttering in his chest.

“Who the hell are you?” The boy spat, rubbing his eyes desperately as his vision swam. The image of the woman flickered, revealing something much more gruesome. Why the fuck did he throw out his psych meds? The woman returned, hiding the oily feathers and sharp face.

“The failed son.” She hissed, and once again the image flickered to show greasy feathers and a fearsome face. “Here to kill the failed son.” She lashed out at the thief in a blur. He raised his arm to protect his face and razor-sharp talons tore at his skin, sending scarlet droplets across the concrete.

Through the pain, the fingers of his other hand fumbled for his pocketknife. This wasn’t the first time he had to fight off monsters when they plagued him his entire life.

He was fast to slash out at the bird-woman, missing her ugly mug by a few inches. Bright red trails of blood streaked his tattooed arm, swirling with the rain onto the ground. “Get the fuck away from me!” He howled, his heart hammering against his chest.

The image of the woman had completely dissolved into some hellish nightmare before him. The bird-woman crouched only feet away, a twisted scowl across it’s face, talons stained red. She lunged again, ready to strike again. The thief braced himself for the impact, but it never came.

There was a loud crack as a black stick collided with the bird-woman’s head, knocking her to the side with a howl. “Get, get out of here!” A voice shouted, and a figure limped down the alley brandishing a crutch in the direction of the monster. It shrieked and dove for the stranger, who only struck it again with a swift swing. “I mean it, he’s under the protection of Camp Half Blood. Return to your master, get out of here.”

With one last swing of the crutch, the creature took to the air with a screech, disappearing into the rain.

The boy fell to the ground, clutching the bright red wounds, shaking with the pain that wracked his arm. “What the fuck was that?”

“A harpy. That’s really not a good sign.”

In better light, the figure was a solid man with curly brown hair plastered to his forehead with rain. A scraggly beard decorated his chin and he leaned heavily on the non-weaponized crutch, breathing hard. “You’re lucky I got here when I did, otherwise you would have been bird food.”

“Right.” The boy breathed, clutching his hands together, trying to get them to stop shaking. “And who the hell are you?”

“Burnie Burns, Camp Half Blood. I’m here to take you somewhere safe.” He wiped some water out of his beard, shaking out his hand with a look of disgust. “Geoff Ramsey, I presume.”

Geoff clenched his jaw, a new wave of anger passing over him. Who was this bastard? Ignoring the pain that seared through him with every moment, he rushed the stranger, pushing him up against the wall. His crutches clattered to the ground as Geoff pressed the blade against his hairy throat. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“I beg to differ.” Burnie growled. Out of Geoff’s sight, the stranger twisted his leg in a position that should have been impossible for a human. Then something collided with Geoff’s stomach that was definitely not a foot. He had been kicked enough times to know how it felt.

This was smaller, but more powerful as it sent Geoff sprawling onto the ground. If there had been anything in his stomach, it would have been spilled across the concrete at that moment as he dry heaved. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes, but they were lost in the rain that ran down his face. He tried to shout, to yell at his assailant, but all that came out was a series of coughs.

Looking up at Burnie, Geoff noticed that, just like the bird-woman, he wasn’t as human as he appeared. He had kicked his sneakers off to the side, showing off two shiny black hooves where his feet should have been. “Like ‘em?” The goat-man smirked, “Just got them waxed.”

“What do you want with me?” Geoff managed to squeeze out hoarsely before being sent into another coughing fit.   
For a moment, he had been glad he wasn’t the only one that glimpsed the bird woman, but this man was only another hallucination too. Or, at least Geoff would’ve brushed it off as one if his stomach wasn’t shriveling up with pain.

“As I said, I want to help you. That’s my job after all, chasing around after you bratty demigods.”

“A what?”

“You have a lot to learn kid.”


	3. Welcome to Camp Half Blood

The ride from England to New York in a sparkling golden chariot carried by flying pegasi was probably a spectacular sight. With the ocean glittering below in the evening sun as they flew over time zones, losing six hours in the process of traveling maybe three, tops. Gavin would have loved it if he hadn’t been huddled on the floor of it, leaning into the corner, trying his hardest not to lose his lunch over the side. 

He clutched his knees to his chest and buried his face into the crevice, taking deep breaths to calm his stomach. Every couple of minutes, his eyes would close for a millisecond before the chariot was buffeted by the wind, the sway jolting him out of desperately wanted sleep. This satyr had woken him up in the middle night, begging him to come before something worse happened.

Gavin had figured that this was just a terrible dream, allowing himself to be dragged from bed despite the very important rule of ‘stranger danger’ and followed the goat-man to his golden chariot. At that moment, he was certain that this was just a hyper-realistic dream. Wouldn’t be the first time he had experienced something like this.

However, as they flew over the water and Gavin’s stomach threatened to revolt, he wasn’t as definite as before.

“Just hang in there a little longer kiddo.” The satyr encourage, pulling roughly on a pair of reigns. The pegasi whinnied in protest. “Just don’t ruin my chariot. It takes forever to get the smell of puke out.”

“Sorry sir.” Gavin groaned, closing his eyes and trying to shrink further into the chariot, the cold metal pressing into his back. He wanted off this crazy ride. This was supposed to be a dream, not actually taking him miles from home. Well, kind of home. Real home had disappeared a year ago with Mum, after that Wellsmith Boy’s Academy was supposed to be ‘home’. That didn’t go quite as planned as well.

Honestly, at this point, Gavin’s whole life had been plans that didn’t go well. From an absent father, to boarding school, to not being there for Mum, not being able to say goodbye. The boy buried his head further into his knees, willed everything to go away, and for him to reappear in his bed.

When he did wake up, the metal of the chariot had grown warm with his heat and the ground had reappeared under the wheels. The satyr, Matt, had hopped from the base. Gavin got to numb legs, swaying uneasily as he used the edge of the chariot to steady himself. He was barely five steps from the golden platform when he took a few running steps to the nearest bush.

“Better there than in my chariot.” Matt muttered, patting the sick teenager on the back.

“It’s all over my shirt,” Gavin groaned, a track of tears running down his cheeks. His knees knocked together, his legs had turned to jello and threatened to send him to the ground. The evening sun was setting just beyond the trees and a heavy humidity that Gavin had never felt before in England settled on his chest.

Then the sound of wheels grinding against the ground and new a set of hooves startled the pair. Another chariot, not as impressive as the one Gavin had just ridden in, touched the ground. 

“Burnie!” Matt called; waving a hand to another satyr that had a scary-looking teenager roughly by the collar. Gavin couldn’t help but notice one of the sleeves on the kid’s jacket was a ruddy brown with, what he was certain, was blood. The other kid jerked violently away from Burnie’s grip, the hoodie sliding off his arms in the process. A shout of pain escaped as the bloody sleeve ripped away from the wounds that decorated his tattooed arms.

Gavin shrunk behind Matt, as the tattooed kid whirled around to face Burnie. “I said to let go of me, now I’m bleeding again. Fuck.” His shouts dissolved into muttering as he snatched the jacket from the satyr’s hands and wrapped it around his bleeding arm. 

“If you had just let me give you some ambrosia,”

“This isn’t the first time I’ve been mugged. Knife-wielding thug, clawed harpy, whatever.”

“Mine only got sick all over his shirt. I think I win.” Matt piped up, receiving a dirty glance from both the satyr and the thuggish kid.

“Shut up, Matt.” Burnie grumbled, crossing his arms in a huff. “Let’s just get these two to Hermes cabin.” He whirled around to face tattoo kid. “Seriously Geoffrey, eat this. It will heal your arm.” He had a plastic baggie full of something, Gavin couldn’t quite tell. Geoffrey reached inside tentatively and put something square into his mouth.

The bright red wounds on his arm were suddenly swarmed by trails of pink, lacing together and closing the wound until all that remained was a shiny scar. Gavin could see Geoffrey struggle to hide a mixture of surprise and awe that crept across his face. He reached for another square when Burnie snatched the bag away and stuffed it into his sweater pocket. “It is possible for there to be too much of a good thing.” He warned.

Gavin trailed behind the two satyrs and Geoffrey as they walked through the ‘camp’. It seemed deserted as they passed a volleyball court and a rather large building that was decorated very brightly. “That’s the arts and crafts building.” A surprising voice informed Gavin as Matt fell in step beside him. 

A distant roar of voices could be heard in the distance, in the direction of a rather large building, brightly lit in an orange glow. “And that is the amphitheater. It’s dinner time, that’s why this place may seem like a ghost town.” Gavin nodded along to show he was listening, but refused to open in his mouth in fear that he might get sick again.

“This is bullshit. I’m too old for summer camp.” Geoffrey spat into the grass beside him, a scowl marring his face. 

“I should have let the harpy kill you.” Burnie snapped as they crossed a small river, a set of cabins looming on the horizon. “Would have been easier on my blood pressure.”

Their inevitable argument was cut short as someone loudly cleared their throat. It was a boy about Geoffrey’s age, his arms crossed firmly against his chest as he stomped over from a peeling brown cabin that contrasted with the marble and stone cabins that surrounded it. He brushed some of the floppy brown hair out of his eyes and huffed again, confirming that he had the attention of the small group. “You interrupted my dinner for this?” He asked with a voice too deep for his age.

“Ryan, I know that your cabin is full but—“ Burnie started, but fell silent as Ryan’s face turned beet red.

“Full? FULL? I am chasing around unclaimed, snot-nosed kids all day and you expect me to take in two more, especially when one is covered is vomit and the other in tattoos. Forget it, stick them with another cabin.” 

Gavin’s stomach churned and burned, doubling over his knees. “I’m going to be sick, excuse me.” With a few stumbling steps, he made it to the nearest bush and emptied the last of his guts. A warm heat washed over him, golden light dancing across his arms in spots.

“Well, can you take one in Ryan?” He heard Matt say behind him. With weary eyes, Gavin glanced up above him. Shimmering in the air was a miniature sun, and if there had been anything left in Gavin’s stomach, he would have been sick all over again.

“What the fuck is that?” He asked weakly, pointing up at the symbol.

“Looks like Apollo doesn’t want his son sleeping with the thieves.” Ryan muttered bitterly, sliding his glance toward Geoffrey. “We can take tattoos, I have a feeling he will fit right in.”

Gavin steadied his shaking feet. “Apollo? Like Greek God of the Sun, Apollo?”

“As I told you kiddo, demigod.” Matt motioned dramatically to Gavin’s skinny frame. “Now, let’s find you a clean shirt and I’ll show you to your cabin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The POV will be kind of flip-flopping between Geoff and Gavin for now. That will probably change as the fic progresses. c:


	4. A Botched Escape Attempt

Geoff stared at the bunk above him, arms tucked behind his head, trying to swallow everything that had happened. Ryan gave him a tour of the cabin, which wasn’t exciting in the slightest. It was crap. Beds were shoved into every crevice of the structure. It wasn’t surprising after an insane amount of campers began to squeeze in through the doors after dinner. Ryan pointed out a few of the older campers, actual children of Hermes. The rest, ranging from as young as six to about twelve, were unclaimed. Their godly assholes for parents hadn’t put in the time to keep track of their bastard children.

As they flooded the cabin, of course, each stared at him with open wonder. Most looked to his tattoos, a sudden flash of fear crossing their eyes. Others rolled their eyes and muttered about the cabin already being too crowded. Geoff almost wished he had Brit kid with him; they could have at least shared the attention.

Then, as the sun finally set beyond the horizon, Ryan settled down the rowdy group of kids and practically shoved them into their bunks. “Go the fuck to sleep.” Geoff heard him mutter under his breath as he climbed onto his bed. It was about a half an hour before the enthusiastic whispering dissolved into snoring, leaving Geoff wide-awake and silently fuming. 

His fingers traced the new scar that decorated his arm, feeling the bumps and grooves where it didn’t heal quite right. This was some crazy, fucked up dream that he was having trouble waking up from. Demigods, satyrs, harpies, it was all nonsense. It had was one all incredible hoax, or a fever dream, maybe he was finally starving to death and this was his brain’s elaborate way to hide that it was dying.

Geoff rolled over, staring at the door, which was the only thing standing between him and escape. His feet ached to run, to flee from what he didn’t understand, but there was a small voice in the back of his head insisting otherwise.

For the last few months he had been sleeping on the streets, pickpocketing strangers for food money, he had dropped out of school and the only people he hung around would probably stab him without a second thought. This was the best he was going to get in a long time.

However, his restless feet won. Trying to remain as quiet as possible, Geoff touched his bare feet to the floor and grabbed his shoes. Someone, Geoff wasn’t quite sure who, took his dirty clothes and had given him a fresh pair of running shorts and an obnoxiously orange camp shirt which he had no choice but to wear.   
Carrying his shoes, Geoff tried to weave his way through the bunks as silently as he could. The floorboards squeaked underneath his feet, but it seemed that all these Hermes kids were heavy sleepers. Probably had to be in such a crowded space. 

The door caused the most noise, creaking as he attempted to open it slowly. One kid closest to the door stirred, gave a loud snore, and flopped over. 

The night air beyond the cabin was still warm, but had lost the heavy humidity. Geoff closed the door carefully behind him and pulled on his shoes over bare feet. Time to start running.

At first, the camp seemed deserted. Nothing stirred, all of the cabins dark and silent, staring at him as he ran by. He would head out the way he came, maybe find one of those chariots, couldn’t be much different than carjacking. He had done that before.

He was barely outside the circle of cabins when something screeched just beyond the trees. The sound cut through Geoff like a bolt of lightning and his heart started to slam against his chest. The image of the harpy flashed in front of his eyes, they wouldn’t keep those damned things here, would they? Geoff started to run faster, pumping his legs as fast as he could.

His path was severed as three shapes darted out of the trees, skimming the ground with razor talons. There was no trick of the eye this time. They were immediately monsters, and their beady eyes were locked right on him. “Camper out of bed. Camper is our dinner.” They screeched in unison, the first one dive-bombing straight for Geoff’s head. 

The ground suddenly went slippery underneath his feet as his shoes slid against the grass. He couldn’t change direction fast enough for his panicked mind, truly terrified that he would receive a blow to the head. However, he found purchase soon enough and the harpy’s terrible maw missed him by a breath. Geoff was off running again, but back toward the cabins. 

The lights stayed off and quiet as he ran along the line, desperately trying to reach Hermes cabin. He neared the peeling brown door when one of the harpies fell in a swoop, blocking the doorway. “Unclaimed camper out at night.” It growled as the other two circled overhead. “The best meal.”

“Hey, over here you idiot!” A shout rang out across the cabins. One cabin had its lights on, a beacon of hope. A figure stood outside the door, waving their hands.

Geoff sprinted faster than he had thought possible. The harpies were hot on his tail, calling threats to his back. Then the years of baseball when he was a kid kicked in and he slid the last yard, slipping past the stranger and across the wooden floor. The harpies attempted to follow inside, but were blocked by the camper. “He’s in the cabin, get lost! Shoo!” He shouted, blocking the entrance with his body, careful to keep a foot inside the cabin. 

The harpies let out a low grumbling sound before launching back into the air. The kid slammed the door shut and whirled around to face Geoff. “Seriously, wandering around at night? At least learn the harpies’ patrol path before attempting that!” This camper was young, had tanned skinned with dark hair to match. He wore only a pair of white boxers decorated with bright red roses. 

“They keep those things at a fucking kid’s summer camp?” were the only words Geoff could find, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“Security. Yeah, they will eat any camper that wanders out at night but they are great guard dogs when needed.” The kid shrugged nonchalantly, scratching his head with a yawn. “You’re lucky I was still up. Otherwise you would’ve been bird-food.”

“That is the second time I’ve heard that today.” Geoff muttered, standing stiffly. This cabin was a stark contrast to Hermes cabin, stuffed to the brim with kids. No wonder Ryan had told Burnie to stick them with another cabin. This one was empty. About five bunks were spread out across the room, only one seemed occupied with pictures hanging on the wall next to it. The rest were carefully made and as Geoff leaned against one to stand, his hand was covered with dust. “Are you in here by yourself?”

It was not nearly as lived in as Hermes. The floor was relatively scuff free, it smelled of sea salt rather than sweat, and the walls lacked the decorations of several children attempting to share one space.

“Yeah,” The boy said, without a hint of loneliness. “My dad doesn’t like to get his groove on as often as some of the other gods.” He made a slow gyrating motion with his waist before stopping, a blush creeping across his face. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply that--” 

Geoff held up a hand. “I’m new to this mess, I don’t even know if that Hermes dude is my dad.” He sighed heavily. “This just feels like a bad dream.”

“It does feel like that at first, doesn’t it?” The kid laughed, sitting down on his bed. “My name’s Ray, and you’re new. A little old to be a new camper.”

“Tell me about it.” Geoff sat on the bed across from him, rubbing tired eyes. “I’m Geoffrey, but for the love of god don’t call me that. Geoff works just fine.” He flopped down on the bed, trying to ignore the cloud of dust that erupted from his back. “You’re not going to send me back out there, are you?”

Ray shook his head, a careful smile spreading across his face. “Nah, you don’t need to be harpy bait twice in one night. There’s plenty of room for you here.” The boy rose from his bed and plodded over to the lights, flicking them off. “If you want to make your grand escape, I suggest putting it off until dawn. No one likes to get up before eight here.”

Geoff mumbled a noise of acknowledgement, his muscles relaxing for the first time in days, this bed was really comfortable. He would only sleep a few hours, and then he would be out. Ray wasn’t going to stop him and the harpies would be gone with the sun. He only had to sleep a few hours.

A loud slam on the door jolted Geoff from sleep, banging his forehead against the bunk above him. Bright sunlight filtered in through the windows. He had definitely slept past dawn.

Ray was already out of bed, now wearing one of those obnoxious camp shirts. He had one sandal on his foot and hopped over to the door, still trying to pull the other one on.

“NARVAEZ, OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR.” Ryan’s deep voice bellowed outside. “Do you have my new camper in there? I really don’t want to deal with the paperwork if he’s dead.” He continued to pound on the door until Ray ripped it open.

“YES.” Ray shouted back into Ryan’s face. “He’s right here you psychopath.”

“Nice escape attempt,” Ryan snorted, peering around Ray at him. “Didn’t even get past Poseidon cabin.” His face was slowly going from bright red back to a normal pale. “Let’s get going, it’s time for breakfast.”


	5. Archery Lessons

“It’s hot.” Gavin muttered under his breath as he slumped in his seat, placing his chin on the wooden table. An almost untouched plate of food rested inches from his face. Normally, he would be scarfing down whatever was in front of him, but his stomach wouldn’t settle for anything. Turns out the golden chariot, the satyrs, the sick all over his shirt, and the sun floating above his head were not a dream. That had been a huge shocker in the morning. Sickening worry began to nest in his stomach after that, making even the tastiest of food look unappetizing.

He would be found soon, the boy reasoned with his own panicked mind. Wellsmith’s would notice he was missing, they would find him, and take him back to England where everything made sense and it wasn’t bloody fucking hot all the time. At home, the temperature never rose much more about twenty-six or twenty-seven Celsius. Gavin swore it had to be about thirty-two and he was starting to sweat through his shirt.

That was another thing that bothered him; he had spent his life in school with uniform and rules. Now, clad in only a t-shirt and a pair of shorts given to him, he felt underdressed. Granted, that was a good thing at the moment, as he nearly became a puddle of perspiration. 

“Hey, new kid, you okay?” A camper Gavin had met the night before, Carson might have been his name, sat beside him. He was dark-haired, American, and had a pair of obnoxiously colored sunglasses perched on his face. He was also a son of Apollo, so technically his half-brother. Gavin had been an only child his entire life, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to have roughly two dozen half-siblings.

“I’m perfect.” Gavin grumbled and received a pat on the back in response. However, Carson/Cameron/Caleb/whatever recoiled his hand in disgust when he realized that Gavin’s back was covered in sweat. 

Caleb smiled uneasily, playing with the bright pink frame of his sunglasses. “Well, eat up. We have archery practice next.”

“Archery?” Gavin perked up considerably, the first semblance of a smile crossing his face. 

Wellsmith’s never encouraged violence of any sort. Weapons were banned on campus, and it was a strong belief that violence belonged in the realm of the common man. Archery was a noble sport, Gavin’s mother had always said, but Wellsmith’s heartily disagreed. That still didn’t stop his mum from getting him a proper bow and arrow and allowing him to smuggle it to school. As piles and piles of books were forced upon him, Gavin found comfort in the one thing he truly excelled in: archery.

The heat bothered him less as he plodded along behind the gaggle of Apollo campers. This was nothing like any summer camp Gavin had ever attended. These weren’t stuffy kids in polo shirts learning how to tie knots and use compasses. Around him activity flourished as kids brandished swords, spears, shields, and axes, learning to fight and defend. It was fascinating, honestly. As much as Gavin wanted to be frightened, he couldn’t hide the awe on his face. 

“I suggest taking a target on the ends,” Caleb suddenly swooped in beside him, nearly causing Gavin to jump out of his skin. “We give the younger campers the middle ones so the counselors can keep an eye on them. They tend to fire their arrows a bit toward your face.” The boy rubbed a spot on his leg for emphasis and shot Gavin a pained look before heading toward the middle, waving to a group of children, that couldn’t be older than nine, holding pointy arrows.

Gavin took Caleb’s suggestion and moved toward the edge of the range, picking the second to last target. A girl with pretty blonde hair took the one to his right, and the last target remained without a camper. At least, that was the case for the first fifteen minutes.

“Oh shit, not again.” The girl next to him muttered, and for a moment Gavin thought she had missed the target. Then he realized that would be stupid, noticing the three arrows that were buried deep into the bullseye. Instead, he followed her gaze toward the path beside the range to see someone stomping in their direction.

“Who is that?” Gavin barely got out of his mouth before the stranger had placed his quiver down next to him.

The new kid was solid with wide-shoulders and a head of the curliest brown hair Gavin had ever seen. It was being smothered with a knit cap that was completely unnecessary in the brutal sun. “What does it matter to you?” The kid spat in the dirt near Gavin’s feet. 

Gavin had met bullies at Wellsmith’s, but none were this big. “Prick.” He muttered under his breath as he knocked another arrow, taking a deep breath as he fell into position. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the new boy staring at him intensely, copying his motions. 

They released their arrows at the same time. There was a loud thunk and Gavin threw his fists in the air when his arrow struck right into the bullseye. “Top!” 

“Motherfucker.” The voice next to him raged. Before Gavin could turn his head, the boy already had another arrow ready and launched it. It landed near the first, about a foot away from the target to the right. In rapid succession, the boy launched arrow after arrow with such force that they started to fly right over the target. 

“Calm down and take a deep breath, you just need to—“ Gavin tried to suggest, reaching for the kid’s arm to move it into correct position. What he received instead was that elbow to the nose. There was a sharp crack and Gavin stumbled backward, clutching his face. “You tosser, what the fuck was that for?” He shouted, pain exploding across his face.

“I don’t want any of your help,” The kid howled, stamping his foot.

It was barely five seconds before Caleb ran over, still clutching his bow. “JONES. What the fuck are you doing here?” He growled, standing as if to shield Gavin. “I thought that Ares kids were down at sword training.”

“Screw sword training, it’s dumb.” Jones crossed his arms. “Forget it, I’m leaving!” The kid threw his arms up in the air and stormed away, leaving his quiver and bow behind. 

Gavin finally pulled his fingers away from his nose, which throbbed. Blood had spilled out into his fingers and down onto his shirt. “Bollocks, that hurt a lot.” He muttered, trying to keep the tears from spilling. He definitely wanted to go back to Wellsmith’s. No one hit him there.

Caleb rested a hand on his shoulder. “Ares kids are a real pain in the ass.” He glared in the direction the kid left. “And Michael Jones is one of the worst. I swear that kid is easier to set off than a bomb.” He rolled his eyes. “Let’s go get you cleaned up. You don’t need to spend the rest of the day in a blood and sweat-soaked shirt.”

Turned out that Caleb was pretty damn good at first-aid. His nose was quickly reduced in size, the swelling gone down with a few words and some strange-smelling medicine. “Apollo’s children are excellent healers. We’ll start teaching you soon enough.” The bleeding stopped and the pain was a dull throb. 

Caleb pulled away, tugging the rubber gloves off his hands. “That is all I can do for now.” He tossed them in the trash with the small mountain of bloody tissues. “I need to grab the kiddos from the range, you’re welcome to stay here until we get back.”

He disappeared out the door and Gavin fell back onto his bunk with a huff. This place was awful. He wanted to go home. Well, as much of a home that was left in England. His eyes shifted toward the door and noticed a quiver and bow leaning against the wall. The front of the quiver was marked with an angry red boar; it had to be that kid, Michael’s. 

It was stupid to consider it, especially when it was the kid that just elbowed him in the nose, but Gavin rose from the bed and collected the gear. Outside the cabins, kids rushed about on their business. In the early afternoon sun, the heat was almost unbearable as he stood, a moment of confusion passing over him as he glanced from one building to the other. Which one was Ares?

Then it was obvious as he spotted the atrocious red building with barbed wire on the roof. With a gulp, he knocked on the door, flinching when it opened almost immediately. A girl leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed. She was very pretty with blonde hair and a large ring sticking out of her nose. “What do you want?” She stared down at him. Her tone was harsh, but the smile on her face said otherwise.

“I think these belong to Michael.” He said, holding up the bow and quiver. 

“Yeah, I already heard about his temper tantrum at the firing range.” She shrugged, turning into the cabin. “Hey Michael, get over here. There’s an Apollo kid here with your stuff!”

There was a loud stomping inside the cabin and then Michael appeared, still red-faced and frowning. He snatched the bow and quiver from Gavin’s hands, and turned to the girl. “Griffon, can I talk to him without you hovering? I promise not to beat the shit out of him.”

“Good enough for me.” The girl shrugged, disappearing into the cabin and closing the door behind her.

“Sorry about probably breaking your nose, I was mad.” Michael looked down toward the ground. 

“It’s okay, I guess. Just please don’t do it again.”

“And I wanted to ask, Griffon would laugh if she heard me ask.” He muttered shaking his head. “You’re new in camp, and you’re already good at archery, and I guess that’s better for me. “ He started to ramble on, and Gavin was lost. “Aww fuck it. Can you help me with archery? I want to be good at something.”

For a moment, Gavin was stunned. This kid had just bashed him in the nose, and now he was asking for archery lessons? Guess it was less embarrassing, whatever this kid’s problem was, Gavin didn’t know it. And it wouldn’t hurt to be friends with him, Gavin was at a complete lack of those.

“Yeah, I’ll do it.”

Michael looked stunned, then almost angry, and finally broke out into a smile. “Thanks dude, you’re cool.” He disappeared into the cabin just as Gavin noticed, from the corner of his eye, the group of Apollo kids returning to the cabin.


	6. An Explosion at the Beach

He was done. The noise, the heat, the constant movement, despite living in the city, on the streets nonetheless, he was overwhelmed with the constant attention that was given in the Hermes cabin. He stuffed an extra t-shirt, a change of shorts, and some food he smuggled from breakfast into a backpack he had stolen from Ryan. Well, actually it was not stolen for once in Geoff’s life. Ryan actually sat on the bunk above him, his feet swinging in Geoff’s face while he packed.

“Don’t go, these kids will drive me up a wall without you.”

“I’ve been here a week,” Geoff shot back, zipping the bag shut. “You can survive without me.”

“How do you know I won’t strangle one of them? You won’t be there to stop me.” The whiny tone did not fit Ryan’s deep voice.

“You would never do it. Ryan the Strangler is an embarrassing enough nickname to keep you from it.”

“That’s true,” He paused for a moment, trying to think of a better excuse. “Just don’t leave me dude, this has been the best week ever.”

Geoff rolled his eyes, shouldering the backpack. “I am going swimming, away from the other campers. I am going to be gone a whole afternoon.” The idea of running away had slowly started to disappear from his head. Some nights, when someone snored extra loudly, or a kid stuck paste in his hair, or the noise just became too much, it would tentatively resurface. However, then Ryan told a hilariously inappropriate joke, Geoff’s stomach was full and his bed was comfortable, and that cute girl from Ares cabin smiled at him, and it would retreat back into the depths. He wasn’t leaving any time soon.

Ryan crossed his arms like an angry child. “Just be back before Capture the Flag.” He called to Geoff’s retreating back as he slipped out the door.

He was headed straight for the beach. It was a long stretch of sand beyond the mess hall and the climbing wall. A majority of the campers were taken either to the lake at the center of camp, and if they were going to be in the ocean, it was directly off the path. A group of kids were already splashing around in the shallows as Geoff passed. He got a couple waves from the older campers that stood in ankle-deep waters, only sparing him a glance from their younger charges. It was about another half-mile hike over the rocky beach before the campers became spots in the distance. At first, Geoff flopped down in the sand, enjoying the quiet of only the waves crashing on the shore. It was probably the first moment of peace he had since arriving at Camp Half Blood. It was definitely the first time he was alone.

Hermes cabin was a constant blur of noise and movement, kids coming in and out. Since his arrival, about five kids had moved out after being claimed by their lazy parents. Apparently, years before this would have been considered a miracle, but some boy, Percy, had fixed this with the Gods. That kid must have been a badass. Despite the now five empty beds, the noise level had hardly gone down.

Some nights Geoff did hide out in Poseidon cabin, and Ray was more than happy to have a cabinmate every once in a while. The kid was a riot and a complete mystery to Geoff. Sometimes he seemed so naïve and nothing seemed to faze him. Then Geoff watched him impale a straw dummy with a trident and decapitate another with a sword, and decided never to piss Ray off ever.

However, as much peace Poseidon cabin offered him, it did not compare to this. Geoff sat back up, pulling his shirt off and throwing it aside in the sand. He slid for a moment on the shifting ground, but was quick to the water, letting his scorched toes cool in the water. Each day seemed to get stuffier and hotter than the previous one, but his tolerance to the weather increased dramatically in that short week.

He stretched his arms above his head, enjoying the breeze that drifted off the water and rustled in the trees over his shoulders. In the sun, Geoff could clearly see the scars that stretched across his arm. He had shown them to Burnie only a few days before, who scratched his chin at the sight, muttering how they should have been healed by now. Geoff had only shrugged. He didn’t mind a few extra scars.

Wading deeper into the water, the water was about waist deep before the rocks completely disappeared underfoot, and nearly dragging Geoff down with it. Not expecting the sudden drop, he came up spluttering salt water and wiping it from his stinging eyes. 

Geoff turned toward the shore just in time to witness something spectacular and absolutely horrifying. There was an echoing explosion and a cloud of smoke rose from the forest. Even in the water, Geoff swore he felt a wave of heat hit him.

He rushed out onto shore, sand sticking to his calves as he kicked it up behind him. However, as he reached the line of trees, someone burst out of the shadows and dashed past him, stumbling face first into the water.

“Holy shit, are you okay?” Geoff called, sliding through the sand as he tried to run to the fallen camper. Smoke rose from the water where the boy had faceplanted, and for a moment panic rose in Geoff’s throat as the figure didn’t move. 

Then there was an explosion of movement as the boy raised his head with a splash, patting down the remnants of a scraggly beard that had once been on his chin. “Damn it, that took months to grow!” The front of his t-shirt was riddled with burn holes, exposing surprisingly undamaged skin.

Geoff waded into the water, standing about calf-deep in front of the still-smoking camper. He was solid with wide-set shoulders and a round face framed by holed ginger stubble. Also, he had a noticeable lack of eyebrows. He narrowed his eyes in Geoff’s direction, setting his jaw. “Hello,” He said, squinting. “I would give a proper greeting if I could actually tell who you are.”

He reached into the water and Geoff quickly joined him, searching the rocky bottom for glasses. Up close, this camper was easy enough to recognize. Jack Pattillo of Hephaestus cabin, he was easy to pick out of a crowd with hair as red as the bonfire. 

Geoff’s fingers skimmed against something, and grabbed it before the waves pulled them away. “Are these your glasses?” He asked, pulling out a pair of thick frames. One of the lenses was cracked right down the middle. “They might be a bit broken.” He warned when Jack reached for them.

“They were already cracked, don’t worry about it.” Jack pushed the glasses onto his face and his eyes refocused on Geoff. “Oh, you’re the new camper that Ryan goes on and on about.” 

Nodding, feeling a slight blush creep across his face, Geoff offered a hand to Jack, which he took. “Ryan’s a good guy,”

“I don’t know what he would do without you.” Jack grinned, squeezing out the hem of his shirt. “That’s another destroyed shirt, I should start a collection.”

“What the fuck were you doing anyway? That was a pretty big explosion.”

“I was working on a smoke bomb that my team was going to use during Capture the Flag, but as you can see, it doesn’t work like it’s supposed to.”

They waded out onto shore, Jack shaking his head to get the water out of his ears. All of a sudden, he paused midstep and whirled around to face Geoff. “Don’t tell Ryan about the bomb, our teams play against each other.” Then realization spread across his face. “Which means you’re on Ryan’s team and, ugh I’m an idiot.” He buried his face in a callused hand.

“Nah, don’t worry about it. I won’t tell him.” Geoff laughed and smiled. “Your secret is safe with me.”

Jack lifted his head, a grin breaking out across his face. “Ryan’s right, you are a cool dude.” He slung a still dripping arm across Geoff’s shoulders. “We’ll be good friends. Maybe you will get claimed and we can share a cabin.”

“I heard it’s like a thousand degrees in there.” Geoff protested, and Jack laughed harder.

“You will get used to it., I promise.”

Geoff tried to laugh along, but the topic had snagged something in his stomach. What if he did get claimed? He would have to leave Hermes cabin. Yeah, the noise level would probably go down drastically, but to abandon Ryan? Maybe he would just get claimed by Hermes, that would be the best news he received, possibly ever, or never get claimed. That would work too. Then again, he was apparently the failed son. He had never forgotten what the harpy had said as it tried to murder his sorry ass. 

Maybe his father held even littler interest in him than most gods had for their children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like filler chapters, but Jack is important soon and the fun is just getting started in the next few. So keep an eye out for them! (:
> 
> Also, I'm not below asking for some reviews. |D I want to know what you guys think so far and if there is anything you want see in Let's Play: Demigods and Monsters in the future! I love suggestions!


	7. Capture the Flag [Part 1]

“We need armor for this?” Gavin’s voice cracked as he asked. Caleb tugged hard on the shoulder straps, the chest plate pressing into the Brit’s chest, almost uncomfortably tight. “A game of capture the flag that necessitates armor doesn’t sound like an appropriate game for children.”

Caleb just laughed, pulling his hands away from Gavin’s armor and brushing them together to get rid of some imaginary dirt. “You’re just nervous.” He smirked, pulling a pair of camouflage sunglasses down over his eyes. “Now there is someone you need to meet.”

A gaggle of campers stood around, fixing each other’s armor and sharpening weapons. When there is a camp of overpowered children with godly genetics, there needs to be a way they can blow off some steam. Why not rugby, Gavin thought, surely that was an aggressive enough sport without involving weapons. Among the kids was a single camper pulling a silver chest plate with blue engravings over his t-shirt. 

He couldn’t be much older than Gavin with dark hair and glasses perched on his nose. In the ground beside him were the three prongs of a trident, the handle sticking up toward the sky. The boy was chewing the inside of his cheek as he wrestled the straps into place. He only noticed their approach at the last second. “Caleb! What’s up?” He tugged at the chest piece one last time before letting it thump against his chest.

“Ray, I want you to meet Gavin. He’s a mean shot with an arrow.”

“Aren’t all of Apollo’s children or is that an elaborate conspiracy?” Ray arched an eyebrow, a sly smile stretching across his face. 

Caleb scrunched up his face and stuck out his tongue. “Don’t turn into Matt on me.” He teased, pulling a few arrows out of the quiver strapped to his back and weighing them in his hands. “Ryan told me to pair the two of you up,” He said, his hand slapping roughly onto Gavin’s shoulder. “Ray here is a child of Poseidon, he has some pretty nasty water powers. And these are for you Gavin.” He offered the arrows he held in his hand.

Gavin took them cautiously, half-expecting them to explode. Caleb had already played that trick on him earlier in the week. During practice, he handed over an arrow that when Gavin hit the target, exploded into a thousand pieces. Just thinking about it made his cheek sting with the invisible cut the shrapnel had given him.

“These don’t explode.” Caleb huffed and rolled his eyes, as if reading Gavin’s mind. “They launch a net, can trap about four or five campers in a go. You and Ray are going to be a distraction, try to lure away as many of the other team as you can and trap them.”

“Sounds good to me!” Ray barked enthusiastically, pulling his trident out of the ground with a flourish. The movement caused Gavin to stumble backward as the razor sharp tips breezed inches away from his chest plate. “The other cabins won’t know what hit them.”

Gavin sighed and shoved the new arrows into his quiver, a heavy dread in his chest. All around him the campers were almost finished dressing in their thick armor, chatting eagerly with heat-flushed faces about strategy and tactics. Ryan, the head of Hermes cabin, was directing his campers, which were numerous, into position. In the back of the group, Gavin noticed the tattooed kid Geoffrey. They hadn’t spoken since they both arrived in Camp Half Blood and Gavin was ushered to Apollo cabin after being claimed. He wondered how the other new camper was getting along. 

“Hey, Gavin, ready to go?” Ray snapped Gavin back to the present with a nudge in the shoulder. 

Gavin sighed heavily, the knot in his stomach growing tighter. “Yeah, I guess so.”

Ray led Gavin to a spot along the stream that marked the boundary between their team’s territory, and the other team, which was spearheaded by Ares cabin. At first, it was only them in the eerie quiet. At the water’s edge, Ray stripped off his boots and socks, storing them under a tree. “Be ready to grab those for me if I say so. The forest isn’t exactly a place to run barefoot.”

‘Then why did you take off your shoes?’ Gavin was going to ask when Ray waded about ankle-deep into the water, standing at the halfway point in the stream. With a look of deep concentration, he raised his hands and with it a wave of water moved with the motion. The water flew up toward the sky in thick mist, completely obscuring the other side of the stream. 

“Be ready when the first wave of campers arrives. You are going to shoot one of those arrows into the spray and surprise those fuckers.” Ray punched the air enthusiastically, a wave of water following the path of his arms, effectively drenching the child of Poseidon. Beads of water pooled on the lenses of his glasses, making his eyes match his crazy smile.

The sound of a conch echoed through the silent trees, and it was answered with the roar of camper’s voices as the game was launched into action. Ray readied his trident at his side and Gavin’s hands shook as he pulled the first net-enabled arrow from his quiver. 

In the shadows, Gavin would spot flashes of blue plumes as his teammates made their way to the stream, starting the offense. Then, it wasn’t long until the first collection of red plumes appeared out of the trees.

Ray’s arms were a blur as he sent the first wall of water into the air, scattering the Ares players with a wild scream, but they weren’t fast enough. Gavin positioned the arrow and let it fly into the spray. There was a loud click and several muffled thumps as campers were thrown to the ground. The mist cleared with the breeze and the net had captured four campers that squirmed underneath the weight. 

“Hell yes!” Ray scrambled back onto the shore, panting with a manic grin stretched across his face. “Come on Gavin,” He whacked Gavin on the shoulder, jarring him out of his surprised stupor. “We need to help cover other parts of the stream.”

The campers underneath the net continued to struggle away from its grip, but it was useless. Even a girl from Ares attempted to cut away at the rope with the dagger in her hand, but it was useless. The net held strong.

With boots pulled on haphazardly, Ray scrambled along the bank, glancing over his shoulder in an almost constant motion to be certain that Gavin was still there.

Adrenaline pumped through his veins after that shot. It was exhilarating just to hit a target when it mattered. Gavin’s heart hammered against his chest, however this time it was for the thrill of the game, and bloody hell was it fun. 

The scene repeated itself two more times. A group of campers would come rushing near the stream, Ray would create a wall of water, and Gavin took them out with a net arrow. The third group had even included two campers from their first attempt. Gavin was nearly in stitches as they screamed in unrestrained frustration at being trapped for a second time. 

Ray ran ahead again, his boots splashing in the shallows. The trident spun in his hand, unable to keep his fingers still. Gavin didn’t blame him; he could hardly allow his heart to rest. This was the most fun he had had in a long time. “I hope our team grabs the flag soon,” Ray said breathlessly, finally slowing at a new portion of the stream. He threw off his boots, tugging off his socks in a flurry. “This is fucking exhausting.”

“No kidding,” Gavin panted, bent over his knees. Sweat dripped down his neck and face, becoming droplets on the front of his chest plate. “Maybe can you splash me a bit, that might help.”

Ray laughed as was about oblige when there was the sound of numerous footsteps. “It will have to be after we deal with them.” He dropped his voice to a whisper, readying his hands for another wave of water. The group came charging out of the trees, spears already raised, obviously prepared for what was about to happen.

“I think they’ve caught onto us.” Ray said, almost gleefully as he raised a wave bigger than any before. He was about to send it crashing onto the group of furious campers when there was a sharp crack, lighting up the trees for miles. The thunderous clap that accompanied it shook the ground and Gavin covered his ears. Ray’s wave froze in midair then came crashing down around them, soaking them both to the bone. Gavin shot a panicked look at Ray; this wasn’t part of the game, was it?

All color had disappeared from Ray’s face, a genuine look of fear in his eyes. His jaw clenched and then he was a blur of movement as he dashed past the other team and into the forest toward the rising column of smoke. His trident had fallen out of his hands and glimmered at the bottom of the stream.


	8. Capture the Flag [Part 2]

The banner streamed out over his shoulder, a beacon of red shouting for every camper in the forest to chase him. Yet, somehow, Geoff was on his own. He only had to reach the stream, then the game was over, their team would win. Before the game started, Ryan had pulled him aside with a few of the older campers, and created the offensive plan. He recounted how in most games, he was the one that led the charge. That wouldn’t change, but he wouldn’t be the one to collect the flag. “That’s your job Geoff, they won’t expect the new guy.”

Ryan had been right, they didn’t. Armed with only a small dagger and the lightest armor offered, Geoff had lagged behind the rest of the group as they made as much noise as possible. Sure enough that drew out the Ares defense, shouting for blood. Swords and spears flashed and collided in the air, the ground was showered with sparks as the demigods duked it out.

From the shadows, Geoff watched as Ryan charged toward the flag with his sword raised. He was immediately tackled to the ground by the two guards, dragging him away from his prize, kicking and screaming. He was disarmed and quickly bound, but he put up such a stink that the attention of the two defenders was solely focused on him.

“Get the fuck off me,” Ryan screeched and managed to kick one of them in the stomach. The young Ares kid, his head an absolute mess with curls, stumbled backward with a sharp exhale. The second defender succeeded in trapping Ryan’s hands behind his back, tying them together with a piece of rope. All sets of eyes were off the flag, 

As quietly as possible, not that his footsteps could be heard over Ryan’s string of cusses and the fighting just beyond the trees, Geoff crept over to the flag. The two guards were attempting to drag a still thrashing Ryan in the opposite direction as he attempted to bite their hands. Geoff snatched the flag from its spot, crumpling the fine material in his hands. 

His heart hammered against his chest, and for a moment he was frozen, only watching as one of the guards finally glanced over his shoulder. However, before it even computed in the kid’s head that their flag was stolen, Geoff was gone in a flash. His feet had never moved faster in his life as he leapt over a bush and into the cover of the woods. There was shouting behind him as several of the Ares team noticed that, holy shit, their flag was gone.

Geoff took the path that Ryan had described before the game started. Running straight for the creek was risky, he would definitely be confronted several times before he reached the safety of the other side. He had only been in camp a week and his skills with any weapon were shaky at best. Geoff had some concept of how to work a knife, but compared to an experienced camper’s sword? Even he didn’t want to take that risk. That meant taking the longest route possible along the edge of the wood. 

At first, it was quiet as he lost the other campers. He was alone, trying to walk as quietly as he could, avoiding the twigs and pebbles that threatened to give away his position. He stepped slowly over a root that threatened to trip him, and his eyes scanned the thicket around him in a fit of paranoia. He was so close to winning, he didn’t want to mess this up for Ryan and Ray. Before the game, they had been both been thrilled when Geoff showed up from his day at the beach, ready for the game. They each talked about their first Capture the Flag game in length, assuring Geoff that he would love it as well.

His fingers ached; his knuckles had turned white from the strength in which he used to hold onto the flag. He wasn’t going to let it go for anything.

The woods around him were dark, the thick canopy of leaves and needles blocking out the sun in some patches. However, with a sharp bang to his left, the air around him became thick with smoke, completely blotting out his vision. “What the hell?” He muttered under his breath, heart kicking back into gear, throwing itself against his ribcage. 

He was about to run, escape the cloud of smoke, when something collided with his side. Geoff was thrown to the ground, dagger sliding away from his fingers, something much larger than him pinning him to the forest ground. Instinct kicking in, Geoff lashed out with his fists, one of them collided with hair. His fingers buried deep and latched on, tugging at it.

“That is such a dirty move!” A voice howled in response and Geoff recognized it immediately.

“Jack?” Geoff asked through the smoke. Through the thinning smoke, his red hair started to stand out and Geoff felt his hand close around the flag as well, ready to wrestle for it.

All the hair on Geoff’s neck and arms stood up as a shiver passed down his spine. Through the smoke, a light that didn’t belong to the sun caught his eyes. And then, as the smoke blinded him, it changed to a painful white as something came streaking out of the sky. With reflexes he shouldn’t have possessed, Geoff rolled, barely avoiding the searing hot flash of lightning as it struck the ground.

There was a tremendous rumble that shook the Earth beneath them and blinding pain rushed up Geoff’s arms. The flag fell in a red flutter from his hands as he pushed Jack off with surprisingly strength and stumbled away.

“Geoff, what the hell is going on?” His voice was muffled, as Geoff’s vision blurred into black at the corners and everything around him became white noise. Pain, like nothing he had ever felt, rushed up and down his arms. For a moment, all he could do was clutch at his skin, begging for the agony to subside. It pulsed and writhed under his muscles, like a current of electricity searched for an escape from its flesh prison.

With a ragged breath, Geoff stared down at the arms, almost expecting them to be burning. Maybe the heat from the strike had been enough to melt his skin away. It felt that way. However, as he stared, mouth gaping open, his skin was still on his bones. His tattoos were not the same, they glowed a white-blue, blotting out whatever color they had been. The only interruption of the bright pattern was the three thick scars from the harpy attack, which seemed to be disappearing, as his arms grew brighter.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it was over. The light faded from Geoff’s arms, the pain ebbing away with it, leaving only a dull ache. The scars had completely disappeared from his skin, normal and untouched skin was left in its place. Just a few feet away, the ground was blackened to a crisp from the strike, sending a column of smoke into the sky.

Geoff turned toward a pale-faced Jack, who clutched the red flag close to his chest. At first they stared at each other in silence, neither quite sure what had just happened. The color slowly returned to Jack’s face and a look of realization crossed his face. “You are definitely no son of Hermes.”

The sound of footsteps rapidly approaching finally spurred Geoff into action. “I have to get out of here.” His old instinct of not standing out, blending in with the crowd, started to kick in. His months on the streets had told him being noticed was bad. This would definitely get him noticed.

Jack seemed to recognize Geoff’s panic and nodded. “I’ll come up with an excuse. Go.” He waved Geoff on with the flag, pointing back in the direction of camp.

As the footsteps and voices drew nearer, Geoff dashed into the trees, leaving Jack with the scorching hole in the ground and the flag. 

The camp was empty as Geoff ran out of the woods. A group of nymphs stared at him as he tried to walk as calmly past them as he could. His breathing was ragged and he rubbed the skin along his arms, still trying to process what had happened. The lightning, the light along his arms, the electricity running in his veins, every sign pointed toward one thing. However, it was the one thing Geoff didn’t want to accept.

“What the hell are you doing back in camp Kid?”

Geoff whirled around to meet a familiar face. “Hi Burnie,” He muttered breathlessly, hiding his arms behind his back. “I just don’t think I’m cut out for Capture the Flag. Demigods can get a little intense.”

“So can you. I think I remember something about you pinning me up against a wall. I had to kick you to get away.” The satyr pointed out with a frown, not believing a word of Geoff’s lie. “Honestly, I think you have something to do with that smoke in the sky, but I’m not going to ask.” Burnie shook his head, throwing his arms in the air in resignation. “Sometimes, I have just had it up to my horns with you demigods and your talent for wrecking things.”

He started to clomp off, still muttering about demigods, when Geoff cleared his throat. “Hey Burnie, are there are other ways that Gods claim their children?” He managed to squeeze out before he wanted to strangle himself.

Burnie turned his head, arching an eyebrow. “Do you think you were claimed or something? I’m surprised you haven’t yet.”

Geoff shrugged. “I don’t think so,” Well, he hoped so. “I just want to know when it does happen.”

There was a moment of silence as Burnie mulled over his thoughts. “Aphrodite kids get make-overs from their mom, but I don’t see you getting prettier any time soon.” He smirked as he spoke. Geoff wanted to laugh, but it ended up with a half-hearted smile. “And there are times that Gods will directly contact their children, and stuff.” Burnie scratched at his beard. “That’s about all I can give you.” He pat Geoff on the shoulder. “Don’t worry too much about it, the gods are assholes. You’re no better for knowing who your parent is. Anyway, don’t you like it in Hermes cabin?”

Geoff nodded, a lump forming in his throat. He really liked it in Hermes cabin, despite the noise and the chaos; he didn’t want to be in any other cabin. Yeah, occasionally he escaped to Poseidon cabin for peace, but he never wanted to leave for good. Ryan was his best friend in this crazy place. He didn’t want to abandon the little family he had for another cabin.

He wasn’t stupid. Geoff sighed heavily as Burnie told him to head back to Hermes and rest. The satyr headed off, saying he might be needed when the injured campers started to roll in. 

Hermes cabin was silent as Geoff flopped down onto his cabin. Outside, the first of the campers had started to return, the Ares kids excitedly whooping as they held the blue team’s flag high above their head. They must have gotten it during the chaos. Geoff turned onto his side as the Hermes kids walked in, muttering amongst themselves, dejected by the loss.

Geoff felt a hand on his shoulder, and he didn’t have to turn to tell it was Ryan. “You disappeared and Jack had the flag. What happened?” When Geoff remained silent, he could practically feel Ryan’s eye roll. “Whatever. We would have won if Jack’s stupid bomb hadn’t malfunction. Distracted the whole team.”

When Ryan walked away, Geoff stared down at his tattoos and rubbed at the skin, the memory of the lights and the pain still remained in the back of his mind. The lightning, the electricity, the heat, Geoff was not an idiot. He definitely was no son of Hermes. There wasn’t a doubt in Geoff’s mind that he was the son of Zeus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will probably be the last chapter for the next week or so. I'm leaving for school tomorrow and need to set up my dorm, start Quidditch practice, and get used to my classes and then I will probably start writing again! (: Hope you've enjoyed and I will see you guys in a week unless I get impatient!


	9. Now For Something Completely Different

Sharp stones buried into his bare feet, the wind sent the dripping water swirling against his skin, creating a mist against his back. The explosion had finished its ringing echo through the air, but he could still feel it in his chest. It threatened to shatter his ribcage as it ripped toward his heart. The fear, the twisting knot in his stomach was back. He was not alone, this was just as the prophecy had predicted. This was it for him. And still he ran toward his fate.

“Wait? Why the hell are we running toward the scary noise?” Gavin shouted behind him. 

The trees cleared away to reveal a slowly forming crowd of campers. Ray shoved a few smaller Apollo kids out of the way toward the front to find a scorched patch of Earth. However, there was a distinct lack of lighting, distinct lack of persons that it could belong to. Instead, sitting a little stunned on the ground, was a Hephaestus camper, Jack. His hair was singed black at the tips, clutching the Ares’s flag between his fingers.

Through cracked lenses, he glanced at the crowd with a lop-sided grin. “Nothing to see here, just a smoke bomb gone wrong.” He said, trying to stand on legs that couldn’t quit shaking.

A sigh, heavier than a boulder, lifted from Ray’s chest. Panic flooded out from his feet in a wave. He had a tad longer, the words given to him when he turned thirteen, were still only the worst birthday gift ever. Fingers closed around his shoulder, and Ray turned to face a winded and pale-faced Gavin. “Bloody hell, you run fast.” He panted, wiping some sweat from his forehead.

The ear-splitting call of the conch echoed through the air. With the red flag still in Jack’s hands, that had to mean that the blue flag had been claimed. Normally, Ray would have pitched a fit. Losing to Ares was an embarrassment, but the son of Poseidon was too relieved for that. He slung an arm across Gavin’s shoulders, turning him back toward the camp. “You’ll get there. In Camp Half-Blood, there’s a lot to run away from.”

Gavin groaned, his shoulders slumping. “That is excellent encouragement.”

Dinner was a mess of shouting and taunts passed around the tables, a growing cloud of animosity after the game hovered above the eating campers. Ray watched from his empty table as the tension wrapped itself tighter and tighter, threatening to snap in a food fight. Ray had specifically gotten mashed potatoes for the occasion, waiting for someone to shoot first. That was the best part about Capture the Flag, a food fight almost always followed it.

“Umm, Ray Narvaez?” A tiny voice asked from his left. Ray let his hand stray from his ready plate with a glance. It was a young satyr; his horns were invisible underneath dense dark curls. “You’re wanted in the Big House.” The young satyr gulped nervously before dashing off. For the second time that day, Ray felt his heart drop into his stomach. 

The food fight promptly erupted behind him as soon as Ray stood outside the mess hall’s doors. A baked potato sailed past his ear as Ray closed the door behind him. 

A few satyrs sprinted past him and into the chaos to calm down the campers, as Ray kicked his way down the path to the Big House. He knew exactly what this meeting was going to be about. Mr. D wouldn’t be there. He didn’t have a soft spot for children of Poseidon. It would probably be Gus, maybe Burnie. They tolerated him at best, and knew the whole story. They were one of the few.

His fifteenth birthday was only a few days away. That’s when everything would change, Ray wasn’t oblivious to it. He could only wish that puberty could be his biggest problem. A huge hint to those that are confused, it wasn’t his biggest problem.

Sure enough, before Ray could even knock on the door, it swung open to reveal the grumpiest satyr on the planet. “Thank gods I have you to deal with. Otherwise I would have pudding in my hair and you have NO IDEA how hard it is to get pudding out of your legs.”

“That was more information than I needed to know Gus.” Ray muttered under his breath and received a death stare. “What did you call me for?” He asked, as if he didn’t already know. Specific orders probably kept Gus from hitting him at that exact moment.

Gus crossed his arms and huffed. “Stop fucking around, you can’t avoid this with stupidity. We both know you are too smart for that.” The front room of the Big House was cleared of the Ping-Pong table that was typically used for Counselor meetings. Ray had been attending them for as long as he could remember, being the only Poseidon kid made that happen. However, he had paced these floors many times in its absence under the watchful eyes of Gus and Burnie. They knew everything.

“You turn fifteen in three days, there’s kind of a prophecy hanging over your head. Are you going to do something about that?”

And there was the reason Ray hadn’t slept at all the last week. The prophecy was almost a decade old now, given to him when he first stepped in Camp Half Blood. Six demigods, fronted by the son of Poseidon on his fifteenth birthday, must complete the trials of the Golden Pillar to recover the six rings of Alecto. “If he idles too long, a son of the Sky King will send death to his heart.” The last sentence barely escaped Ray’s mouth as he recounted it for Gus. 

When Ray was six and heard these words from a mummified hippy, he hadn’t thought twice about them. Six year olds didn’t have time for that when there were sharp swords to play with, and he wasn’t going to be fifteen for a whole nine years. Well, those nine years went by too quickly for Ray.

It wasn’t the quest that scared him. He was no stranger to those; he was a totally popular guy to be chosen for them. It was the ‘death to his heart’ part that scared the ever-living shit out of him as he lay in bed at night. There was a reason that thunderstorms were absolutely terrifying. 

“I don’t even know where to start with that stupid quest.”

Gus’s frown deepened. “And stalling might kill you. Make a choice.” When Ray chose to remain silent, the satyr sighed dramatically. “Don’t mistake this as actually caring about you, but I would suggest pulling a party together for starters, and I have something to help you.”

The sound of his hooves against the wood echoed through the house as Ray stared down at his shoes. He would much rather be thigh-deep in the food fight than sweating about this stupid prophecy. 

The edge of a map crossed into Ray’s field of vision. Gus held out the yellowed and slightly torn paper, trying to maintain an apathetic face. “I’ve been pulling in quite a few favors just for you Kid. Don’t waste them.” 

Ray opened up the map slowly, flinching as the paper crinkled in his hands. Five thick, black X’s marked the map, each of them landing on a city with a name Ray recognized. “Well, thank goodness there’s not time limit on this Quest.” Ray tried to laugh, but it failed in his throat. 

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” Gus warned. “Shit always goes down around a prophecy. This won’t just be about you.”

“Sometimes it feels like it.”

Gus gripped his shoulder with a thump. “You’ll be fine Kid, you won’t be alone on this. My suggestion would just be to choose wisely. I would suggest having a party ready to go by Monday.”

Ray groaned. “I fucking hate Mondays.”


	10. A Formal Request

Geoff rolled over in his cot and flinched at the loud squelching noise in his ear. He dug a finger in, for what felt like the thousandth time, and pulled out a glob of ketchup. The mess hall had erupted into a food fight of monstrous proportions that normally he would have partaken in with immense glee. 

Instead he ate his burger at the corner of the Hermes table and watched as Ryan launched the ground beef from his tacos across the room. At one point he offered a handful to Geoff and when he turned them down, they were promptly shoved in his face. “Stop being such a downer. It wasn’t your fault that we lost.” He tried to reason, but that was definitely not the reason that Geoff was in a less than stellar mood.

He did help with the circus act that followed after the food fight of corralling the collection of Hermes campers into the showers and into bed before the harpies started their patrol. Nothing sounded worse than dealing with the paperwork of three eaten nine year olds. 

The rest of the time was a blur until Geoff was standing in front of his bunk in his boxers, rubbing at the faint tingling that still lingered underneath his skin. The blinding images of his glowing tattoos still burned into his eyelids and the heat of the lightning as it struck the ground. It could have killed both him and Jack if they hadn’t rolled out of the way in time. There was a nagging feeling in his stomach that might have been the purpose of it.

“Hey dude, what’s up?” Ryan’s harsh whisper caused Geoff to jump, shoving his arms behind his back even though there was nothing to hide except his tattoos. “You’ve been off since Capture the Flag.” Ryan hung upside down from his bunk, his head hanging at the perfect height to meet Geoff’s eyes square on. 

Geoff shrugged, sitting down on his bed, forcing Ryan to roll onto his stomach and drop down lower, letting his arms hang off the bunk. “Seriously, you can talk to me. I don’t have to be Ryan the Strangler to you. That’s just a horror story for the kids.” He tried to smile, but it only succeeded on half of his face.

“I made up Ryan the Strangler this morning.” Geoff muttered, rubbing his eyes. He was tired and all he wanted was to sleep, not to be psychoanalyzed by Ryan. 

“Yeah but since then I have convinced ten kids that I actually strangled a Cyclops to death when I was twelve.”

Geoff was too tired to argue. Ryan was a psychopath. That had been established a long time ago. “Go to bed Ryan.” He said with a heavy sigh, flopping down onto the blankets. “I’m done talking.”

“Sheesh, okay.” Ryan hissed from between his teeth. There was a series of grunts as he wiggled his way back onto his bed. “Goodnight you grumpy prick.”

Of course, sleep came as easily as when he used sleep in the gutters. He tossed and turned, throwing the covers on and off as he switched between being too hot and too cold. The snoring of the campers around him was about three times as annoying as usual and the wood above him creaked each time Ryan moved. 

Geoff peeked one open and focused on the dim glow coming from the window. He held his breath as a shape drifted past, casting a blurry shadow across the floor. As it disappeared, he slowly rose from his bed; hardly bothering to throw on a hoodie he picked up off the ground. 

He jogged across the clearing in bare feet, eyes scanning the trees that lined the cabins for any movement. With a sharp inhale, he noticed one of the harpies settle near Hypno cabin, but it only watched him with a lazy gaze as he reached Poseidon cabin. They were probably used to watching him escape at night anyhow, he wasn’t worth their time.

Normally, the door swung open before Geoff even touched the knob. Ray expected on an almost nightly basis. However, this time, as he reached for door, it did not open. Even when he twisted the knob, he was surprised to find it locked. Ray never locked his door.

Checking over his shoulder and with a jolt of terror realizing that the bored harpy had renewed interest, Geoff slammed his fit against the door. “Hey Ray, open up or I might get eaten.”

Hardly a second later, as if he was waiting for Geoff to knock, Ray opened the door. Geoff stumbled inside and Ray slammed it closed as the harpy rose onto its legs. “What’s with the door locking? You never do that.” Geoff’s voice cracked, wiping some cold sweat off the back of his neck. The harpies still gave him the heebie-jeebies. 

The cabin was dark, not surprising for close to midnight, but there was no faint glow of a DS or music playing quietly. Instead Ray watched him blearily through tired eyes, and forced to squint without his glasses. “What are you doing here?” He muttered, rubbing a hand through his dark hair.

“Like you didn’t expect me.” Geoff muttered, but paused as Ray continued to scowl at him. “What’s wrong with you?” Geoff had come to Poseidon cabin hoping to dump some of the shit that had happened today on him. Ray was a son of the ‘Big Three’ or whatever it was called, maybe he would have some advice about being the son of Zeus. Instead, it seemed like Ray was the one who needed to get something off his chest. 

“Nothing,” Ray finally grumbled, sitting down on his bed. “Nothing is ever wrong with me.”

Geoff couldn’t help it; there was a slight sting in his hand as it collided with the side of Ray’s head. “Stop being stupid and spill it.” He knew he was being a hypocrite. He had refused sharing time with Ryan, but he wasn’t going to let Ray to get by with this behavior. He was too happy of a kid to ever be grumpy.

“I turn fifteen in—“ Ray glanced toward the radio on his nightstand. “two days.”

“Congrats,” Geoff glowered, not understanding the cause for a foul mood. “One year closer to being able to legally drink.”

Ray made a face, sticking out his tongue. “Nah man, alcohol is gross.”

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that and get you shit-faced once I convince Ryan to steal some booze next week.”

“Nah, it’s just that as a son of the Big Three, you’re guaranteed a life-altering prophecy before you’re eighteen.” Ray sighed, leaning against the wall. Geoff tried to hide the lump that had begun to clog his throat. “Mine starts in two days and I know I’m not ready.”

Geoff raised an eyebrow. “Don’t say that,” He started, but then closed his mouth when he realized that he had nothing better to follow that. 

“It’s not the quest, per se, that I’m worried about. Six demigods, six trials of the Golden Pillar, and the rings of Alecto. That’s the abridged version. However, the impending doom tacked on the end is what bothers me. Delay too long and a son of the Sky King will get you. Fucking Zeus kids, they always mean trouble.” Ray gave a shaky laugh, and Geoff was quick to turn on his heels, peeling the sweatshirt away from his suddenly sweaty back. “Well, I guess since there isn’t one in camp at the moment, I will have to worry about one on the quest.”

“W—Well who are you going to take with you?” Geoff tried to hide his apprehension but his voice still cracked. He definitely couldn’t tell Ray now. ‘Hey dude, I’m that son of Zeus so I guess this means I will have totally kill you.’ Yeah, that didn’t sound very good. 

“That was actually something I wanted to ask you. I want you and Ryan to come with me. Ryan’s really resourceful, being a kid of Hermes and all, and then you have your street smarts. I have none, so I need something to compensate for that.”

With that, Geoff heart sank. His answer was on the tip of his tongue to turn it down. “I just came to camp, are you sure that—“ Geoff turned to face Ray and met his eyes. His words froze in his throat.

“I have my reasons. And Ryan’s experience is more than enough to make up where you lack.” Ray half-smiled, looking a touch more confident than when Geoff had walked in. “So, you’ll go right?”

_Tell him, tell him, tell him, tell him._ Geoff’s brain screamed at him. Somehow, instead, he smiled half-heartedly and nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”


	11. Collecting the Quest

“Bollocks!” Gavin hardly stuck up his blade in time to block his opponent’s from crashing into his face. A shower of sparks went up between them and the Brit stumbled backward, deflecting the other sword back down toward the ground, but it’s owner did not relinquish it. Before Gavin was even allowed to catch his breath, the sword came crashing down again, except this time it was the flat of the blade that struck the shoulder of his fighting arm.

The effect was immediate, sending Gavin down onto one knee as it buckled underneath him due to the sheer force. With a cry of pain, his sword hit the ground. The sound echoed through the empty arena.

“Wow, you’re so lucky no one was here to see that.” The words were accompanied by cruel laughter and Gavin glared at his opponent. Michael flashed him a toothy grin.

“You don’t need to be so tough, I’m only starting.” Gavin complained, rubbing his now sore shoulder. Michael only shrugged. “I did teach you how to fire correctly.”

“And I still suck at it. We’re even.” Michael said, offering his free hand out to Gavin, which he took. 

Michael was in a noticeably good mood that morning: partially because his team had been victorious in Capture the Flag the day before, and partially because he just got to beat the shit out of him. Gavin had been giving Michael lessons in archery and fixing his technique, and Michael thought it was an equal trade if he helped albeit it was mostly a way for Michael to channel his excessive anger.

However, it was still better than getting elbowed in the nose again. Gavin still had a bruise.

As an Ares kid, Gavin guessed, it just made Michael the best at anything violent. He swung the sword around as Gavin watched, beheading a collection of dummies that he had pulled out of storage. Each swing had produced a cloud of dust and straw. “See? See!” He would say after every couple of swings as if Gavin was supposed to understand. The first no had received a terrifying scowl, so Gavin only nodded and smiled each time instead.

Then, as they began to spar, Michael seemed to find immense joy in knocking Gavin’s sword out of his hands in increasingly creative ways. Knocking him off his feet, almost dislocating his shoulder, and simply tackling him to the ground seemed to be Michael’s favorites, even if only one was truly swordplay.

Yet, somehow this seemed to help somewhat as Gavin rubbed out his sore shoulder and picked up his sword from the ground, thus begun round Gavin-lost-count-a-long-time-ago.

“Ready for some more?” Michael smirked, lashing out with his sword just as the last word left his mouth.

Gavin’s sword went up faster than any time before, matching Michael’s strike and sidestepping his larger opponent. He tried to sweep Michael’s feet, aiming the flat of the blade for his knees, but the swing was easily jumped. There was another attempted strike to Gavin’s right that only missed his armor by a hair’s width. However, with that swing was a gap in Michael’s stance that was immediately taken advantage of.

With a forward thrust, Gavin caught a strap of Michael’s armor with the side of his sword and with a grunt; he put his whole weight onto the blade. The sudden tug in his armor caused Michael’s to stumble and to Gavin’s immense glee, lose his balance. “Fuck!” He shouted before hitting the ground.

There was a cloud of dust and Michael was on the ground, wrestling Gavin’s blade out of the leather strap. “You son of a bitch, that was awesome.” He muttered, trying to hide the smile that fluttered across his red face.

Gavin matched that smile, bending over his knees panting. The heat of the day beat down on them and the front of their shirts were clearly soaked with sweat. “It’s probably about time we turned in. Caleb hasn’t taught me how to deal with heat stroke yet.”

Michael looked like he was about to say something when someone beat him to it.

“Hey llllllloosers!” Ray trotted into the arena, grinning madly as he spotted them. “Is Michael teaching you how to swordfight, that’s hysterical.” The dark-haired kid commented, a sly smile crossing his face. 

Michael jumped to his feet, clenching his jaw. “What’s that supposed to mean?” His knuckles turned white around the hilt of his sword. Gavin’s hung in his other hand until he held it out to Ray. “Put your money where your fucking mouth is.”

“Okay.” The smile didn’t disappear from Ray’s face.

The fight that proceeded was nothing like Gavin and Michael had. Michael swung his sword toward Ray’s stomach for a brutal blow that was swiftly met with a counter that threw Michael backward with an explosion of sparks. Then, with movement almost too fast for Gavin to see, Ray took the butt of his sword to Michael’s fighting hand. The force of the strike caused Michael to let go with a cry, but that wasn’t the end. Ray took the flat of his sword to his opponent’s ankles. Michael was down on the ground and had the tip of a sword to his throat before Gavin could even think about assisting his friend.

“We both know what you’re good at Michael. Stick to that.” Ray took the point of the sword away, the seriousness of his expression dissolving into a more familiar goofy grin. “Now that’s aside, I wanted to talk to you idiots about something important.”

“What? Kicking my ass wasn’t the most important part of your day?” Michael growled, trying to wipe the shame off his face. 

Ray raised an eyebrow. “Maybe I won’t take you on my quest.”

Michael never scrambled to his feet faster. Gavin noticed a new flame burst behind his eyes. “A quest? Why the hell didn’t you say so sooner?”

Ray shrugged, a mischievous smile spreading across his face. “I don’t know if it will be as fun as the hellhounds in Nashville, but the rings of Alecto, how does that sound?”

“Wait a second, a quest?” Gavin quickly interrupted before he became as lost as usual. This didn’t sound like something that was to be taken lightly, as Ray and Michael looked to be on the edge of reminiscing. Between violent games of Capture the Flag and classes including dangerous weapons, it wasn’t surprising that these quests were a thing.

“Saving people, finding artifacts, understanding the world. You know, that stuff.” Ray smiled, but there was something off-putting about it. “And I was going to ask if you both wanted to come.”

“Gavin?”

“Me?”

Both of them were incredibly incredulous at the same time. Gavin’s jaw dropped slightly, he had just gotten to camp and accepted that this entire experience wasn’t an extended vivid dream. Why the hell would he leave when he was just settling?

“Hell yeah, you have mad aim. Michael may be able to hack and slash his way through enemies, but you have the advantage of distance.”

“Why not take some Apollo kid that actually has some quest experience?” Michael interjected, but Ray shook his head.

“Come on dude, it’s like a right of passage. I think Gavin can handle it.”

Gavin found it very difficult to get his jaw to snap back into place. It was nearly touching the ground. “I—I guess I could go.”

An arm rough wrapped around Gavin’s shoulders and Michael pulled him closer. “And I’ll protect him. We’re both in!” He was a little more enthusiastic than usual. “He’s my boy, where he goes I go.”

“Awesome. Now just to fill the last spot.” Ray said, starting to turn around.

“Wait a second,” A confused look passed over Michael’s face. “It’s not just the three of us?” The tough exposure that he always presented seemed to slip. “More than that tends to be bad luck.”

“Nope. Quest calls for six. Nothing I can do about it.” Ray shrugged, still trying to smile, but Gavin could tell it was getting harder. “Starting packing your bags Lads, we leave on Monday.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More short chapters because college is hard and I have to go to class.


	12. Prepare the Preparations

Six demigods, that is what the prophecy had called for, and gods damned, Ray had found five others to join him. Be certain of your choices, Gus had warned. That is a high risk, taking newbies with you. He knew that, more than anything; Gus wanted to knock some sense into him. Scream and cuss until Ray gave in and picked a slightly more experienced team. However, much to Ray’s surprise, he only deeply frowned and sighed, giving him the clearance to leave camp the next morning.

That left him pacing the floor of his cabin, the reality of the situation weighing in heavily on his shoulders. Brown eyes flickered toward the window every couple seconds, expecting the screech of a harpy as they spotted Geoff making his way over from Hermes cabin. Despite his warnings the first night, Geoff still had not learned the harpies’ routine. He always wandered out when they were stalking the area between the cabins, the idiot.

However, nothing stirred outside as the night pressed on. Ray still couldn’t get into bed, his feet too restless to even entertain such an idea. For the past nine years, this prophecy had hung over his head and now was the time to pursue it. The thought terrified him.

He swung his trident out for the fourth time, striking the side of the wall with a dull thud. Ray didn’t chance stabbing at it, the last time he got the spikes stuck in the wall, he had to deal with Burnie yelling at him for an hour and then fixing the wall himself. Instead, he created tiny little dents with each strike, watching the silver indent the pale wood.

Still no sign of Geoff.

Sometimes Ray liked to pretend that the Hermes camper’s presence annoyed him. Hell, it was his cabin and Geoff was acting like he owned the place. He would come in at some ungodly hour while Ray was attempting to sleep (playing on his technically illegal DS) and climb into a bunk that h e had claimed as his. It was an act though, the huff and puff that Ray produced as Geoff moved about noisily. He loved having the older camper around; it was a pleasant break in the loneliness. 

Bumps in the night no longer were as terrifying, the nightmares had disappeared almost entirely, and it was nice to listen to something beside his breathing and the wind. Geoff was a fitful sleeper, constantly twisting and turning, and that was a comfort to Ray. At least someone was there when that inevitable something happened.

When his feet finally ached and a new blistered formed on his palm from the weight of the trident, Ray sat down on his bunk with a sigh. Geoff had failed to make an appearance and at this point, he probably wouldn’t. The door would remain unlocked for him, just in case.

Morning came too quickly. Ray woke up in a sweat, his covers thrown aside onto the floor. Geoff’s bunk was empty and Ray couldn’t remember his nightmare except for the thunder.

The ground outside was dry and hard under his hiking boots. Ray typically preferred his sandals; he could get his feet wet whenever he wanted without having damp shoes. A quest, however, isn’t the environment for sandals. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky, only a blinding light blue of morning. When he emerged from the cabin, Ray could already see two shapes sprawled out on the ground near the center of the cabins.

As campers around them fanned out toward the pavilion, sparing curious glances their way, Geoff and Ryan seemed completely oblivious to them. Geoff was fidgeting with the straps of his backpack, unzipping and rezipping the main compartment, checking (probably for the thousandth time) if he had everything. Ryan was wiping down his sword in swift motions.

“How is everyone this morning?” Ray tried to sound chipper, shouldering his bag and letting his trident hang loose down at his side. 

“You should probably collapse that before you poke someone in the eye, or freak out some poor mundane.” Ryan muttered, barely glancing up from his sword. Ray frowned before turning the trident over, the prongs facing him, and pulled them off one by one.

Geoff’s eyes flickered toward him. “That’s pretty cool,” He said, the briefest of smiles passing over his face.

Ray shrugged, stuffing the sharp prongs in his bag and collapsing the staff portion like a telescope, shoving that into his pocket. “It’s a pain when a fight starts, but then again, the mist doesn’t work too well on it, so Ryan’s right.”

“The mist?” Geoff glanced over at Ryan.

“Hides the stuff of myth from mundanes, Otherwise there would be a lot of Cyclops spottings that we don’t want to deal with. Also, Ray, Michael went to go get Gavin, so they’ll be back soon.” Ryan finally shoved his sword back into its hilt before stretching back in the sun.

“No sign of Jack?” Ray asked, glancing around for the redhead.

Geoff shook his head. “Not yet.”

Ray plopped down beside Geoff, debating for a second asking where he was last night, but then thought better of it. “Nervous?” He whispered, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Geoff shrugged, fiddling with the straps of his backpack again.

“Dunno man, it was just kind of sudden. I don’t think I have time to be nervous honestly.”

Ray felt a pit of guilt form in his stomach. He kind of was just dragging Geoff along for the ride. Him and Gavin had hardly been in the camp more than a week and they were being taken away from that. Based on the little that Geoff had told him, Ray was dragging him away from the first sense of stability he had had in a long time.

“Hey, whatever you’re thinking about, stop it.” Geoff sliced through his thoughts. “This is supposed to be exciting and shit for you right? Leading a quest? Look like it.” 

Ray nodded, a real smile creeping across his face as Michael and Gavin finally made their way over. Michael was talking excitedly, probably about his last quests, to Gavin who listened attentively. With a hint of satisfaction, Ray noticed that Michael was not carrying any obvious weapons. Instead, a familiar silver ring clung to the pointer finger on his left hand. 

At the same time, Jack approached from the other direction. When he spotted them through cracked glasses, he raised a hand. “Geoff come over here, I got something for you.” He called, waving.

“I should go see,” Geoff said, patting Ray on the shoulder and using it as support as he stood. He crossed the clearing to the meet the redhead, who produced a small leather case from his backpack. 

“Are we getting geared to go?” Michael disrupted Ray’s line of sight, stepping in front of him.

“Yeah, now that everyone’s here, I guess this is as good of a time as ever.” Ray glanced around Michael just in time to see Geoff return the end of a silver dagger back into the case, talking quietly with Jack, a stern look across his face. Ray couldn’t make out a single word of what was being said and he frowned.

A sharp kick slammed into his thigh and he realized that Michael was still talking. “Hey, I asked you where we were starting out. “

Ray moved his gaze to his backpack and dug around in the front pocket for the map Gus had given him. On it, the first X was marked in Pennsylvania. “Apparently this is where the first ring is.”

“And how are we getting there?”

Ryan cleared his throat. “Why do you think I’m on this quest?” He said, with slight accusation. “We’re taking one of the camp vans and I’m one of the few with a viable driver’s license.”

Ray nodded with a shrug. “You have other uses too Ryan.”

“Oh, that makes me feel better.” He said, but half-smiled to show that his feelings weren’t too hurt. “We’re finding six of these rings right? That seems like one for each of us.” Ryan smirked. “A trophy for each of us.”

Jack and Geoff finally rejoined them, the leather case had been stored away somewhere. “Is it time to go?” Jack tried to sound enthusiastic. He rubbed at his chi with a smile. The parts of his beard that had been burned away were starting to regrow in stubbly patches. 

“Yeah, time to get this party started.” Ray said, the nervous knot retying itself in his stomach. It was time for the adventure to begin.


	13. Caught Red-Handed

With their gear loaded into the van, Ryan had the engine started, and Geoff was about to buckle into the back beside Jack when a familiar shape came running toward them. “Hey, wait up!” Burnie called, waving a hand. “Can I talk to Geoffrey before you leave.”

“Geoffrey?” Jack scoffed from beside him, a smirk crossing his face. Geoff gave him a well-deserved punch in the arm before clambering out of the van. 

“What’s up Burnie?” Geoff asked, rubbing the back of his neck. The satyr glared at him with his arms crossed. He hadn’t quite told the goat-man about the quest, and knew in the pit of his stomach that he wouldn’t have approved.

“I wanted to make sure you knew what you were getting into.” Burnie frowned, closing the gap between them. “You cannot take quests lightly. Demigods have died on missions like these.” He fidgeted with a pouch he had slung acorss his wait for a moment, producing a bag of ambrosia, the thing that had healed Geoff on the first day.

He remembered it tasted like the best pizza he had with his mom on their last trip to Chicago.

“Is that for me?” Geoff asked, a little surprised. He knew Gavin had his own supply, being a healer or something.

“You seem really accident-prone, so yes.” He said, shoving the bag into Geoff’s hands. “Remember, only a little bit at a time. Too much could kill you.” Burnie paused, still holding onto an edge of the ambrosia. “You are the biggest pain in the ass I have ever met, but there has been something up with you since Capture the Flag. You’ve gotten too quiet.”

Geoff wrangled the bag out of Burnie’s grasp. “I’m fine.”

“Is there something you want to tell me?”

For a moment, he seriously debated telling Burnie about the lightning, him and Jack’s near-death experience. It was so tempting that Geoff’s lips tingling from holding it in. That was when he noticed Burnie’s gaze flicker toward his arm. “Your scars are gone.” He pointed, a look of confusion passing over his face.

At the same time, Ryan called out from the window. “Come on Geoff, we are never getting out of here without you!”

Knowing that this was his only chance to avoid the inevitable questions, Geoff waved quickly to Burnie. “I have to go.” He turned quickly toward the van, ignoring Burnie calling behind him. For now, Geoff did not have an explanation that he completely understood. Maybe he could hope that after this quest, he would have all the answers he desperately needed.

Geoff reclined in the passenger’s seat, his arms folded across his chest and stared out the window. Normally, with a seat so far back, it had to be annoying someone, but thankfully Michael had stopped giving a shit when he had fallen asleep with his cheek pressed against the window.

Ryan happened to be the most boring driver ever. He obeyed the speed limit, stopped at every light, and took the roads Geoff read off the map without argument. Despite his rather psychopathic reputation on camp, Ryan didn’t deviate much from his orders. So much for being the son of a godly criminal. “He’s the messenger of the gods.” Ryan would correct him, with the slightest grimace across his face. 

The sun had gone down as Ryan pulled onto the side of a dirt road caught somewhere between the emptiness of nowhere and civilization. “We’ll stop here for the night.” He muttered, parking the van without a warning to his passengers.

“You couldn’t find a gas station or something?” Ray muttered with a yawn, but Ryan just shrugged.

“It’s either this, or I run this damned van into a ditch when I fall asleep. That is, unless one of you knows how to drive.”

There were glances exchanged and then silence as no one decided to risk their lives.

Geoff threw open the door, desperate to stretch his legs. According to their map, they were close to the location of the first ring, but that was for the morning when they were rested. Who knew what they were going to be up against? There could just be a hidden room with a ring waiting for them, which would be fucking great. However, not even he was dumb enough to think that was the case. There was going to be a trial of some sort, a test maybe, if his limited knowledge of mythology served him right.

Well, not mythology. Reality.

Camp was set up swiftly as the last of the light disappeared beyond the horizon. Their little plot of land was right outside a thicket of woods that seemed to loom over them like a dog waiting for a steak. 

“I think we could take on a bear,” Michael muttered under his breath as he watched the flurry of shadows that danced on the ground from the swaying branches. The Ares kid was one of the few that Geoff wasn’t familiar with, unlike the British kid.

“We could take on a bear Micool, it would be top!” The kid swung his arm across the other’s shoulders, butchering the name with his accent. Gavin had been all smiles since they had left camp, he was the only one that was unaffected by the fraying nerves they shared.

As Geoff unrolled his sleeping bag, opting to sleep under the stars, there was a hard tap on his back with something metal. Ryan stood behind him holding a flashlight out toward him and in his other hand was two more. “Take this, we’re going to do a sweep of the perimeter.” He glanced over at Michael, Gavin, and Ray who were stretched out around a meager fire Jack had started. “You three will stay here and hold the fort.”

“We can handle that, can’t we lads?” Gavin chimed in, leaning backward onto Michael’s side. Ray shot Ryan a thumbs off, and with no response from the half-asleep Michael, Ryan clicked on his flashlight. 

“You take across the road, just be sure that nothing creepy is lurking. We don’t need a rude awakening in the morning.” Ryan handed the other flashlight to Jack, pointing in the opposite direction that he had given Geoff.

His boots snapped twigs as he pushed through the underbrush, wishing that he had something to whack away the branches. He did have his dagger out, a present that Jack had given him that morning. The silver blade was engraved with a thick lightning bolt. “It’s made with conductive metal,” Jack enthused when he handed over blade. “You know, son of Zeus and all, if you figure out how to control lightning it could be useful.”

The gift was only another reminder that Jack was the only person that knew. Everyone else was blissfully in the dark about his claiming, and Geoff wanted it to stay that way. It was hard to disappoint Jack, telling him that the blade would probably never be used, but that had to be the case. Ray could never know.

A gust of wind buffeted Geoff’s back, ruffling his short hair into a whirlwind mess. He swept the ground with the beam of his flashlight lazily, stifling a yawn with his other hand. The air had grown cooler in the last hour, goose bumps rising on his arms. The end of his route was near and just beyond the thicket of trees he could see the glow of the fire. 

Behind him, a twig snapped, the sound echoing in the sudden silence. Geoff froze in his tracks, his fingers reaching for the hilt of the blade in his pocket. “If that’s Ryan, it’s not funny.” He hissed through clenched teeth, turning around slowly.

The person behind him was definitely not Ryan.

As Geoff shot the beam of light into his face, the man pulled a hand over his eyes, a scowl wrinkling his face. “Sorry to disappoint,” He was lean, dressed in running shorts and socks that reached his knees, and somehow still blinding white despite the darkness. His hair was dark with a sprinkle of gray on both sides of his temple. He reminded Geoff of the men that were in the old movies his mom used to watch.

Geoff drew the dagger out, pointing the end at the man. “I’m not in the mood for this.”

The man smirked, cocking an eyebrow. “Well, I’m not either.” There was a sharp gust of wind and Geoff was on the ground, a shoe buried in his back. The man stood above him, examining the snatched dagger in the limited moonlight. “A lightning bolt, how appropriate.” He commented with a chuckle. “Did Hephaestus’s son make this for you? Excellent craftsmanship, no wonder he’s his favorite.”

“How the hell do you know that?” Geoff yelled, letting his voice get progressively louder. The lads were hardly fifteen yards away. They had to hear that. Geoff tried to roll away from the crushing foot, but the man held fast. “GET THE FUCK OFF ME.” He practically screamed, eyes wildly glancing toward the campsite. Not a single pair of eyes turned to him.

The man rolled his eyes, taking his foot off him. “Calm down, they can’t hear you. I took care of that.”

Geoff climbed to his feet, wiping dirt off his face. “Who are you?” He asked, but he had started to put the puzzle pieces together. He didn’t like the answer.

“Well, I believe you know my son, Ryan.” He held out Geoff’s dagger, hilt first.

“Hermes.” Geoff’s voice was barely a whisper as he took it back, throwing it into its hilt. “What do you want with me? Why not go talk to Ryan?”

Hermes crossed his arms, tilting his head to the side as if he was examining caged animal. “This doesn’t have to do with Ryan. This has to do with you.”

“Well, spit it out then.”

“You’re the best kept secret of Olympus, Zeus has kept your existence very quiet. After his last few children were,” He paused as if looking for the right words. “Less than successful, and only upset Hera further, he kind of swore off sleeping around for a while until you.”

A blossom of pain twisted through Geoff’s palms as he realized that he was digging his fingernails into them.

“Being the messenger has its perks, and I know the truth. While the rest of Olympus is wracking its brains trying to figure out when they had produced a street hoodlum, Zeus has been trying to hide the evidence.”

His blood ran cold as ice with Hermes’ words. The harpies, the bolt of lightning. That was Zeus trying to kill him. Geoff couldn’t find any words.

“Hey, Earth to kid, look at me.”

Geoff didn’t realize he had been staring at his shoes.

“I’m doing you a huge favor, one that will probably get me in trouble, but I worry about the future if Zeus manages to put you six feet under. Children of the big three tend to have power to save or destroy, and I hate to watch that potential go to waste.” Hermes rubbed his hands together, but it wasn’t against the chill. A faint red light escaped from between his fingers. Then he offered a hand to Geoff, beneath his skin was a bright red glow. “This will buy you some time. Come on, shake.” He prompted when Geoff hesitated.

When their hands connected, there was a searing hot pain, and Geoff couldn’t pull away if he wanted. Hermes had a tight grip. 

There was a strangled hiss and a column of steam when their hands were finally separated. In the dim light, Geoff could see that the inside of his hands had turned a searing red.

“You’ve been caught red-handed.” Hermes smirked. “You’re the child of a thief, enjoy it while it lasts. It won’t be long before the truth comes out, make the best out of the time you have.”

There was a sharp gust of wind, and he was gone, the leaves scattered around where he had stood. Geoff stared in a mixture of awe and horror at his hand, feeling the texture of his skin as it burned bright red. He couldn’t help but think that the Messenger of the Gods had either just saved him or royally fucked him over. Only time would tell.


	14. Half-Brothers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's kind of short because I realized I had to switch POV, whoops. Anyway, enjoy!

When he returned to camp, only two out of the three lads were in front of the fire. Michael was out like a light, snoring heavily as he stretched out across the blanket. Using his back as a pillow, Gavin opened a lazy eye to acknowledge the presence of the returning member before closing it again. Ray was easy to find, as he had chosen the stretch of backseat in the back of the van. He wasn’t asleep; his face was lit up with the dull glow from his DS. He glanced up when a shadow fell across him. “Oh, hey Ryan.”

Ryan dropped into the single seat in front Ray with a heavy sigh. “This is your quest and you’re hiding in the van playing DS?” He asked with an arched eyebrow. Ray only shrugged, clicking away against some unseen enemy.

With a heavy sigh, he climbed out of the van, glancing toward the dark trees. Jack and Geoff had left before him; hopefully they would be making their way back soon. Judging by his ability to still be plugging away at his game, Ray was going to be the first on guard, so they would all need to get their sleep.

Honestly, Ryan knew the only reason he was on this quest was because of Geoff. Someone needed to look after one of the camp’s newest members. He knew that the other boy was capable, despite knowing almost nothing about Geoff’s past, Ryan had assumed that he had spent more than his fair share of time defending for himself. Geoff had that look about him, wild and lost.

There was a flicker of light across the ground as the beam of a flashlight danced to meet the firelight. Geoff’s thin frame emerged from the woods, and in the darkness, his face was paler than usual. 

A shiver of panic ran down Ryan’s spine as he raced over to meet his friend. “You alright?” He asked, and watched as Geoff struggled to regain control of his face. 

An uneasy smile crossed his face and he was quick to shove his hand into his pocket. “I’m just peachy.” He grumbled and their shoulders met as Geoff tried to shove past him. 

Ryan was quick to stiff-arm Geoff, effectively stopping him in his tracks. Geoff wasn’t injured in any way, the knees of his jeans were a little muddy and a few loose branches stuck to the front of his shirt. Maybe he took a tumble over a root, and he was just embarrassed. Ryan was almost about to laugh at the thought when he spotted the hint of red creeping up the wrist of Geoff’s hidden hand.

“What’s that?” A mixture of excitement and apprehension filled Ryan as he lunged for Geoff’s wrist.

With surprising speed, Geoff dropped his flashlight and shoved Ryan away, keeping his other hand hidden. “Hey, leave it alone!” He growled protectively, backing a few feet away. “It’s none of your business.”

Ryan smirked. He knew exactly what Geoff was hiding now. “If it’s what I think it is, it is all my business.” With practice form, Ryan charged forward, wrapping his arms around Geoff’s waist. The sheer force sent both of them crashing to the ground, a cloud of dirt and leaves erupting around them. 

Geoff was all bones and joints as Ryan struggled to pin the longer camper to the ground. However, all Geoff got in was a cheap shot to the cheek before Ryan managed to sit his chest and effectively ending all struggle.

“What the hell are you two doing?” He heard Jack come running up to them as he finally grabbed a hold of Geoff’s wrist.

Just as Ryan had suspected, Geoff’s hand had been painted a violent red, he had been caught red-handed and a nearly crippling joy coursed through Ryan. It had been too long since a proper child of Hermes had been claimed and it was his best friend. They were brothers and Ryan couldn’t wipe the stupid grin from his face.

“Ge’off me!” Geoff kicked the air, finally managing to weasel his way out from under Ryan, not that he minded. This was the best day, Geoff was finally claimed and he was a son of Hermes. 

“I win Jack, you owe me ten drachmas!” Ryan crowed, pumping his fists in the air. They had a bet going who would claim Geoff. Jack had insisted on Ares or Hephaestus while Ryan had always remained besides Hermes. Geoff would never fit anywhere else in his mind.

Then, Ryan paused in his own personal celebration to gauge the others. Not even Geoff seemed excited; instead he rubbed at his hand as if trying to remove the red. Jack looked almost petrified, his face drained of most color except for his fiery hair. “Aww come on, you don’t have to pay me right away Jack.” He teased, but his words died in his throat when neither of their expressions changed.

Geoff tried to give a half-hearted smile. “Let’s just go to bed, we have a long day tomorrow.”

Ryan was the last person on guard. The first gray lights of dawn had started to emerge over the horizon when Michael nudged him awake with a yawn. “I’m going to get a few more hours. Your turn.” He had said before curling up in his sleeping bag and was snoring before Ryan had even full emerged from his sleeping bag.

It turned out that tackling Geoff had probably not been his best decision. A dark bruise had started to form on his left cheek from the punch, and his back ached from the tumble to the ground. When he got up, Geoff probably wouldn’t be feeling to hot either. 

Biting the inside of his cheek, Ryan glanced in his friend’s direction. They hadn’t spoken a word since Ryan found his hand, turned a bright red by Hermes’ touch. He slept on the opposite side of the fire, which had died down to embers. He slept with one arm arched over his head, the red on his hand had not faded in the slightest, burning brighter in the dull morning light than at night.

An easy smile spread across Ryan’s face; at least it meant Geoff was a permanent member of Hermes cabin, that was enough to calm his uneasy stomach. Geoff wouldn’t be going anywhere.

Nothing stirred in the woods as he kept post, which was until the others around him started to wake up. Jack was first; he rubbed his still-spotty beard and yawned, fixing his glasses on his face. He didn’t say a word as he walked past Ryan, collecting his backpack. With a rustle, he produced a pile of granola bars, one of which he tossed to Ryan.

“First trial today.” Jack muttered, plopping down beside the fire, running his hands through the coals. The son of Hephaestus doesn’t give a fuck about getting burned. The last of the embers died out as he shifted the whole pile of coals. 

“I still don’t understand what these trials are for. Rings of Alecto, I’ve never heard of them.” Ryan sighed, taking a bite of the granola bar. “Are we going to get a trial each, or do we have to complete them together?”

Jack’s face twisted in deep concentration, staring into the tiny, twisting pillars of smoke that rose from the dead fire. “I don’t know. I don’t even think Ray knows. We’re stumbling into this blind as bats.”

“Speak for yourself. You’re always blind as a bat because you won’t fix your glasses.”

“Hey, they give my face character.” He shot back, adjusting the cracked lenses with a grin.

“And your fire of a beard and hair don’t?”

Jack laughed, and that proceeded to wake up the rest of their merry band. Ray poked his head out of the van where he had spent the night, a huge yawn stretching his face. “Are we going to get moving this morning?” He asked when he had finished, rubbing his eyes.

Ryan stood stiffly from his spot, stretching his arms out with a pop. “Well, that’s up to you.” He winked toward Ray who rolled his eyes. “You’re our leader on this quest.”

Ryan laughed as Ray ducked back into the van with an exasperated sigh. However, he couldn’t help but sympathize for the kid. It was probably difficult to balance being fifteen, which was already a shitty deal, but also being the son of Poseidon and leading your ragtag group of friends on a quest that could kill them. Ray had a lot of weight on his shoulders. Ryan was glad he was just a follower, happy to serve; he was the son of Hermes after all. He served the upper gods.

Glancing over his shoulder, Ryan watched as Geoff awkwardly climbed out of his sleeping bag, not even bothering to hide his hand from the waking Michael and Gavin. Michael dramatically noticed the red-stained hand and clapped Geoff on the shoulder in congratulations. A smile spread across Ryan’s face. At least he had Geoff, they got to be bottom of the godly totem pole together.

“Come on, let’s go!” He cupped his hands around his mouth and hollered. It was time to get this adventure really started.


	15. The First Trial: Stone Cold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is exceptionally long, but expect this for most trial chapters. Have fun reading!

Geoff didn’t talk the entire car ride. Jack guessed it was to be expected, not even he had ever heard of someone being claimed by two gods. From his angle from the middle row of seats, Jack could see him absently rubbing at the red that stained his palm. 

Jack wanted desperately to say something. Ryan was obviously clueless about the whole Zeus thing. He seemed downright peachy to have Geoff as his brother; nothing was going to wipe that smile off his face. Jack’s stomach still twisted with the downright dread he felt when he found Ryan proudly holding Geoff’s hand out in the air like it was a winning lottery ticket.

As he glanced to the other campers in the car, none of them seemed concerned about Geoff’s predicament. Had he really kept it all a secret, even from Ray? The kid was a child of the big three, wouldn’t he be the first person Geoff went to for advice?

“Jack this is amazing,” Geoff’s voice echoed in his head from the day before. He unsheathed the blade, his face drained of color. “You—You engraved a lightning bolt on it.”

“It’s also made of conductive metals.” Jack flinched with guilt as he heard his own eager voice. “Ya know, if you have get the whole lightning thing. You could electrocute your enemies.”

Geoff hid the engraving, a grimace crossing his face. “Seriously, thanks Jack, but I won’t be able to use it. I think you know why.”

That was because Geoff wasn’t telling a single soul. Jack only had the privilege of the knowledge because he had been there first hand. He was going to keep this extremely dangerous piece of information in his back pocket, hide it from the entire world.

Jack silently wondered when that would backfire.

The drive wasn’t long before they reached the first black X Gus had drawn on the map. Ryan pulled into an empty parking lot that emptied out onto a dirt walking trail.

“Ancient trial for a magical ring located in an overgrown wood. Cliché.” Ray called from the backseat. There was a yelp when Michael kicked him in the shin.

“You were the one given a shitty quest. Don’t be such a bitch.” Michael shot back, shoving his way out of the back and out the door of the van, practically falling over Jack’s lap in the process.

“Ray, I suggest you lead the way.” Ryan offered the map to the younger camper, wearing a completely blank face. Jack had known Ryan long enough that there was nothing Ryan wanted more in the world than to lead a quest. That chance never went to children of Hermes.

Ray nodded, snatching the map away and starting his way up the dirt path. It was steep, leaving Jack with an excuse to fall to the back with Geoff. However, there was nothing they could talk about. Ryan hovered only a few feet away. “We should repaint the Hermes cabin when we get back. I keep meaning to do it, but if we recruit Jordan and JJ, maybe we could get it done.”

Geoff nodded along, trying to look eager.

Then the path got steeper, and none of them had the breath to speak anymore. They all panted as the dirt steps tripped them, roots threatened to send them crashing to the ground, and sweat rolled down their backs. Ryan had gone toward the front of the group, hovering over Ray’s shoulder as they navigated the map together.

Jack had his chance.

“Geoff, would you mind telling me what the hell is going on?” Jack whispered harshly, throwing his arm roughly across Geoff’s shoulder to pull their heads close together. For a moment, the tattooed kid let himself be close before Jack felt two hands hit his chest.

Jack stumbled backward, biting his tongue to keep a few choice words from slipping his lips. “This secret you’re keeping is dangerous.”

Geoff whirled his head around to face him, and Jack shrunk slightly against the fire behind the blue eyes. “Trust me Jack,” He said through gritted teeth. “This is a whole lot more complicated than you think.”

“Then explain it to me.” Jack protested, a little louder than he meant.

“Explain what?” Michael, ahead of them by a couple yards, turned around.

“Nothing.” Geoff spat, stalking to the head of the group, leaving Jack in the dust.

Jack sighed, pushing his glasses higher on his nose. He needed to expect that he wasn’t this kid’s confidante; they had hardly known each other more than few days. However, as the only person that knew the truth, Jack still felt that he should know everything. Secrets like these will get Geoff in trouble; he should at least have someone to back him up when shit hits the fan.

The map led them to a cave. It was dark cave in the side of a cliff face, inviting them inside. “Man, how did I get the most cliché quest ever?” Jack heard Ray mutter under his breath, ducking underneath the low hanging entrance. Geoff and Ryan entered together, followed by Michael and Gavin, Jack brought up the rear. 

“Hold on, I got something.” Geoff’s voice echoed down the dark tunnel, bouncing back at them from every direction. There was rustling as he dug through his pockets and then a flicker of light. He clicked a lighter to life. “It’s better than nothing.”

“Ancient cave leading to a mythological artifact, there has to be torches around here somewhere.” That was Ryan. In the lowlight, Jack could see him skimming the walls with his fingers.

“MOTHERFUCKER.” The howl escaped his mouth as light washed over the tunnel. A fixture on the wall, as dark and smooth as obsidian, burst into flames. Ryan stumbled backward from it, clutching at the fingers that had touched it. “I don’t suggest touching that.” Ryan said, trying to mask his whimpering.

“Hold on, I got something for that.” Gavin broke away from the grip he had on Michael (that he thought no one had noticed), pulling off his backpack. 

“Excuse me Michael,” Jack knocked his shoulder into the other camper, making his way to the front of the pack. “I can handle that.” He said, knocking down Ray’s hand as he was trying to gather the courage to touch it. The heat was nothing to Jack; he worked in the forges all day. A little flame never bothered him.

At first, the flames prickled at his fingertips as he picked up the stone. However, as he let the bottom rest in his hands, an ice-cold shiver ran down his arms, almost causing him to drop it. The fire that flickered underneath his chin warmed his face, but his fingers already started to ache from the burning cold.

“Guess I’m leading the way.” Jack sighed, holding the light up to the engulfing darkness. The flickering flame barely illuminated the path a yard ahead, but it was better than stumbling around blindly.

Ray swept his arms in the direction of the gaping mouth. “Your fieriness.” 

The daylight faded to a pinpoint more rapidly than Jack had expected, making the flames a beacon in the darkness. All warmth slipped away, leaving even Jack frozen to the bone as the burning cold from the stone continued to sting at his joints. “I hope we’re almost at the end.” Jack said, trying to keep his teeth from chattering. 

He heard someone behind him start to respond, but it was lost on his ears as the toe of his boot hit something hard. Jack had no time to regain his balance before he tumbled to the ground, hard. His knees scraped violently against the rough ground, and he could already feel the blood. “Goddammit.” He muttered through gritted teeth. “Sorry about that.” He added when he realized the stone had rolled away, the flames flickering out.

There was no response.

“Guys?” Jack’s voice caught in his throat, unnerved by the sudden silence. No footsteps, no voices, not even the slightest breath other than Jack’s own and his quickly increasing heartbeat. His ran his hands along the cave floor, searching desperately for the stone.

One sweep only revealed sharp stones that tore at his left hand, leaving what he knew would be a cut. His right hand had more success, his fingers brushed something cold as death, and then the flames sprung back to life. Jack fumbled with the rock, settling it back into his hands.

There was nothing behind him. The dim glimmer of light that had been the mouth of the cave had disappeared, leaving only sheet of black behind and ahead of him. “Hey, guys this isn’t funny.” Jack’s voice trembled, taking a few steps in the direction he had come from. He held the stone higher, despite the protest in his shaking arms, yet the light revealed nothing. “Where are you?”

It took Jack a minute to realize he had broken into a run. There was nothing, no sign of his friends, and no light from the end of the tunnel. Was he going in the right direction? Maybe he was heading deeper into the belly of the beast. Jack whirled around to face the other direction, running with newfound panic, only to find the same result a few minutes later.

Both directions only stretched into unforgiving darkness.

“Okay, calm down Jack.” The boy tried muttering to himself through shuddering breaths. “You’re just lost. They haven’t left.” If only he could convince his hands to stop shaking. “One of these directions has to be the way out.”

His voice bounced off the cave walls, echoing back to him like whispering ghosts. Jack closed his eyes tight for a minute, wishing them to go away. He wouldn’t open his mouth again; the remnants of his panicked voice only unnerved him further. 

Taking a shuddering breath, Jack turned in the direction he considered to be deeper into the caverns. His footsteps were the only sound as he walked slowly, counting his steps. He kept one hand on the wall, tracing his fingers along the rugged surface. His other hand remained wrapped tight around the stone, his knuckles slowly turning blue from the cold. The freezing air of the cave, having never been touched by sunlight, settled heavily on his chest. The only part of him that remained warm was his face, aglow from the flickering flame.

Jack tried to keep calm, but he couldn’t stop the panic from slamming itself against the walls of his stomach. The familiarity of this was unsettling as his brain scrambled to place it. There was a reason he kept those memories locked deep in his brain.

There was a reason that Jack was never eager for the quest. While demigods climbed over one another at the chance at a quest, Jack stayed behind.

The knock on Hephaestus cabin was almost lost over the sound of the roaring fires. Jack was not the one who heard it as he pummeled away at molten iron, fashioning the beginnings of a dagger. He was unaware until there was a tap on his shoulder.

It was Lindsay. “Stop being deaf, and go to the door. Poseidon kid wants to see you.” She crossed her arms across her chest as Jack rose from his spot. She too had her work gloves on; a smudge of ash graced her round cheek. She was probably annoyed that her work had to be disturbed for Jack’s business.

“Sorry ‘bout that.” He grinned, patting the shorter girl on the head before jogging over to the door. What could Ray want? They had developed a ‘relationship’ over the past few years. Jack made weapons when Ray needed them in exchange for whatever Jack wanted or needed from the outside world. It was a rare occasion that Jack left camp.

Ray, staring off into space, jolted to attention as Jack walked up. “Just the dude I wanted to see!” He took a few bouncy steps into the cabin, a grin stretched wide across his face.

“I’m working on something right now. Whatever you need, it will have to wait at least until tomorrow.” Jack started out, still gung-ho about finishing the dagger. It was a gift. Well, more like a peace offering.

Ray shook his head. “No no, nothing like that! You may want to fashion yourself something instead.” There was a familiar gleam in his eye, however it had never been directed at Jack before.

“Forget it.” Were the first words out of Jack’s mouth.

Ray had been on the verge of speaking, but at Jack’s response his jaw went slack. “Come again?”

“You have a quest, you want me to come. Like I said, forget it.”

“Seriously man? No, I need you. It’s going to be awesome.” Ray whined, obviously not wanting to accept Jack’s response, which only succeeded in pissing him off.

“No. I don’t go on quests. You know what happened last time.” Jack said bitterly, refusing to let the images resurface. Ray opened his mouth, as if to argue, but Jack was quick to shut him down. “Don’t even think about saying ‘it was three years ago.’ If you had been there, you wouldn’t be so eager for a quest either.”

Yeah, he wouldn’t have been eager because the dead can’t get excited.

“Come on, I need you to complete an awesome team.” Ray cut in, his grin wiped away by a look of desperation. “Michael, that new kid Gavin, Ryan, and Geoff. It’ll be fun.”

Jack froze; it was his turn to be silenced. Geoff? After what happened at Capture the Flag, nearly getting killed by the lightning that was meant to claim him, why would he think leaving camp would be a good idea? Did Ray know about it? He knew the two were close; enough gay jokes had been made at his table about Geoff going to Poseidon camp every night. The two seemed to act like no one noticed, but honestly, everyone did. 

“Hey Jack, you still here?” Ray asked, snapping his fingers a few inches from Jack’s face. “I need an answer. I want your expert bomb-making skills on my team.”

He shouldn’t feel obligated to go. Geoff was a new camper, but probably closer to being a legal adult than Jack was. He could take care of himself. Yet, for some reason, the word yes came out of Jack’s mouth.

It was too late to realize what he had done. Ray punched the air, a smile cracking across his face. “Good to have you Jack. We’re leaving on Monday, get your shit together and be ready for some fun. The six trials of the Golden Pillar.”

Then Ray was gone in a flash, as if to insure that Jack couldn’t change his answer.

Son of a bitch.

Maybe this quest would end with all of them returning to camp, Jack tried to tell himself, continuing his plunge into darkness. Maybe the gods would just give him that. However, wandering through this cave alone dampened that hope. Just as his first quest had ended, he was on his own.

His only assurance was the light in his hands.

He couldn’t let that go or everything would be lost.

The path ahead, which had seemed endless, was suddenly severed by a wall. It stretched far above Jack into the murky void overhead. A dead end. What now? He couldn’t head back; Jack had a feeling in his gut that at the other end he would meet the same fate. 

He held the stone up to the wall. Maybe there was a button or a lever. Jack jumped a foot in the air as the light illuminated something scrawled on the wall in smears of red. Somehow he kept a tight grip on the stone.

Stumbling back a few steps, the glow of the flames revealed writing on the cave wall. At first it was illegible to Jack, a sequence of symbols that formed together in a blur. Then his brain kicked into high gear, rearranging the Greek into something decipherable. 

_ONE AFRAID TO BE ALONE WILL ALWAYS BE ALONE._

Jack gritted his teeth, fingers tightening around the freezing stone. What bullshit that was. How was that supposed to help him now? Jack swept his hand across the wall again, still desperately hoping for some lever or switch. He knocked his fist against the wall. It was solid; nothing hollow rang out against the walls. Disappointment rose in his throat like bile.

He was going to have to turn around and wander endlessly to the other side.

His fingers trembled underneath the stone as the piercing cold seemed turn his bones to ice. The ache was almost unbearable which only caused him to grip the stone tighter, not wanting to lose the only light he had.

That’s it, a voice rang in the back of his mind. He was afraid of the dark, the never-ending dark, without his friends. A person who is afraid to be alone will always be alone because he’s afraid to take a risk. He’s afraid they will leave him. Jack squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. For a moment, his fingers clutched the stone so tightly that his fingers went numb.

Then, with as much force as he could muster, Jack hurled the stone at the ground.


	16. The Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter because reasons. And I wanted to say thank you to everyone that has been commenting! Life Hack: If I am responding to comments chances are that I'm writing the newest chapter. I look and reply to them for inspiration. You guys keep me going. <3

Light flooded the tunnel as torches, which had been just out of their reach, burst into flames. Jack stood a few feet ahead of them, pale as a sheet. Sweat on his face glistened in the low light. The stone he had been had been split in half at his feet; something silver and green glittered between the two chunks.

Seconds earlier they had been plunged into darkness. Jack had tripped on the rough floor and no one dared to breathe as the dark swallowed all of them whole. Then Jack clambered back onto his feet, and threw the glossy black stone to the ground with a deafening clatter. As their eyes adjusted to the sudden light, Jack collapsed to the ground, knees buckling like twigs underfoot. 

“Dude, are you okay?” Geoff was the first to recover, falling to his knees next to Jack, clutching onto the shaking boy’s shoulder. His face almost appeared translucent next to his burning hair and beard, sweat trickling down his forehead and dropping from his nose until it disappeared into his shirt. Glasses were askew on his nose, the thick cracked lines across the lenses seemed longer than before. 

Geoff watched as Jack reached toward the small piece of silver that had fallen out from between the chunks of rock, his fingers shaking. For a moment, he failed to pick it up, falling from between his fingers like liquid mercury. Then he managed to hold it in his palm. It was perfectly circular and in the limited light a pale green gem sparkled. 

“A ring!” Ray pushed his way past the others, crouching down in front of Jack. He held out his hand, fingers outstretched. Jack’s response was to close his tightly around the ring, refusing to look Ray in the eye. 

“I—I think this one’s for me.” He stammered, using the back of the clenched fist to wipe the sweat from his face. “Six trials, six demigods, six rings.” He repeated Ray’s pitch, a ghost of a smile curling the edges of his lips. “We’ll all get our chance.”

Geoff slung Jack’s arm across his shoulders, heaved the bigger demigod back onto his feet. Slinging his arm across Jack’s waist, their steps were shaky at first. Then they gained pace as the others bounced ahead of them, excited to be back in the sun.

“What happened?” Geoff whispered as they trailed behind the rest. Jack looked as if he had just walked through hell and back. Would they all have to endure this?

He hoped not. Jack was a tough son of a bitch; he had to be when he was a child of Hephaestus. Geoff did not feel nearly that tough. Yeah, he was a son of Zeus but to him, it meant jack shit. Even Zeus was too much of a coward to admit to the rest of the gods that he had a son. How was Geoff ever supposed to be brave when he had that in his genes?

Jack sighed, and Geoff saw him slip the ring in his pocket. He refused to wear it. “First, what happened with you?” Jack shot the question back; some of the color was starting to return to his face.

There was a twist of guilt in Geoff’s stomach when he remembered his red hand. The events of last night had been lost in the panic of the first trial. However, the mark hadn’t faded away unlike the story. Geoff wished it would. It had stopped burning when he let go of Hermes’s hand, but with each reminder of its existence, Geoff could almost feel the heat again.

After making sure they were out of earshot of the rest, Geoff skimmed over the details of his encounter with Hermes, giving Jack the short version while they were still out of earshot of the rest of the group.

A burning pit that probably connected to hell had formed in Geoff’s heart in the past few hours. Ryan practically radiated with joy whenever he caught sight of Geoff’s hand as if he had just won the lottery. Perhaps, in his mind, he had. Over the weeks that Geoff had been at Camp Half Blood, they had gotten close, to the point where Geoff had hoped he was a son of Hermes. That would just be easier on them both.

Then, Zeus had to come and ruin everything. Hermes was either going to save his ass or make it ten times worse. Geoff didn’t want to imagine Ryan’s face when he found out about Geoff’s real parentage. Hell, Geoff thought, he will probably be able to hear Ryan’s heart break from a mile away.

When he turned to glance at Jack, he automatically flinched at the sight of a sympathetic smile. He didn’t want pity. He had gotten through life without receiving anyone’s sympathy and honestly, he didn’t know what to do with it. 

That was when Jack launched into what had happened while the lights had gone out. What had been seconds for Geoff and the others were minutes, probably close to half an hour, based on the way Jack recounted it. 

However, as Jack told his tale, Geoff couldn’t help but feel that something important was being hidden. It wasn’t on purpose; Jack wasn’t stumbling or fabricating the story to avoid. Rather, something beyond Geoff’s knowledge was affecting the telling. Something that Jack didn’t want or feel the need to share.

He was about to ask about it when the sunlight assaulted his eyes. It was easy to forget how much light stung, but also the heat that prickled against his frozen skin. 

“One trial down, five more to go!” Ray, at the head of the group, raised a fist in the air. “Lllllet’s do this!” He cried out, taking down the path at full speed. Michael and Gavin were quick to charge after him, but Ryan fell back to walk beside Geoff, who still supported Jack.

“With age we learn to take it slow, right Gents?” He smirks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yup. Wizened and gray, we stroke our beards and contemplate while those Lads charge without thought.” Jack joined in, leaning a little less on Geoff’s shoulder. He stroked at his spotty beard, a smile pulling at half of his mouth. 

“And we complain about the promiscuity of youth because we’re jealous that they can get a proper erection.” Geoff chirped in.

“Big words for a street rat.” Ryan laughed, causing Geoff to shrug.

“I did got to school at one point dipshit. I’m not an idiot.”

“Debatable.” Jack quipped.

“Are you going to put on the ring?” Ryan changed the subject so suddenly that Geoff nearly stopped walking. Jack was not fazed as he shrugged.

“I’m going to play it safe, we don’t know what these things do.”

“Aw come on, isn’t that the fun of quests? Trying out the cool shit you get?”

It was Jack’s turn to go rigid; Geoff had fingernails digging into his shoulder. However, Jack managed to hide it on his face. “Nah. I’ll let someone else have the fun. Maybe one of the Lads will be next, they’ll be eager to try their ring out.” He laughed, but it was flat, it caused no shake in Jack as he pulled the last of his weight from Geoff’s shoulder.


	17. Complications

They were driving again. Why they hadn’t taken the fucking chariots, Michael had no clue. This wasn’t his first time in the rodeo. Usually quests were epic journeys with foot-aching amounts of walking. While the car was a nice change of pace in that aspect, it still felt wrong in a sense. 

From the beginning, the quest had given the son of Ares a twisting pain in his stomach. Six demigods was a first, quests usually contained three heroes and any more meant bad luck. Yet Ray had doubled that number, and Michael had to wonder why. Was it the number of rings? That seemed to be the only explanation. Six trials thus it must mean six demiogods? Well, at least that saved them from doing two each. 

Maybe there was more to this than Michael had anticipated. He kept that thought in the back of his mind. Ray was a son of Poseidon; kids of the Big Three shouldn’t be trusted at face value. There could be a prophecy in here that Ray wasn’t big into sharing.

Michael didn’t doubt that for a second.

There was a light snore in Michael’s ear, and he turned his head only to get a tuft of pale brown hair in the eye. Gavin was fast asleep on his shoulder, sending hot puffs of air across his shirt. That was another thing weighing on Michael; this was Gavin’s first quest.

Michael remembered his first. It had been simultaneously been the most stressful and fun moment in his life. He could only imagine Gavin, being plucked from Camp Half-Blood merely weeks after he arrived only to be thrown into this mess. No wonder he didn’t sleep at all last night. Having slept practically back to back, Michael knew how much the kid had tossed and turned. 

With a sigh, Michael let his cheek press against the top of Gavin’s head. Over the top of the brown mop was Ray, who at that moment glanced up from his DS, a smirk forming over his face. He began to mouth something, but Michael closed his eyes so he didn’t have to see it.

“How much fucking longer?” Michael muttered when he woke from a half-daze and realized they were still driving. 

“Do you want the good news or the bad news?” Jack’s voice came from the front passenger’s seat.

“Why does there have to be both?” Michael’s voice, being so close to his ear, started to rouse Gavin and the warmth disappeared from the Ares camper’s shoulder.

“Good news is that there’s a rest stop coming up. We’ll take a break there and let everyone stretch their legs.”

“And the bad news?”

“There’s still another four hours until the next mark on the map.” It was Ray that cut in, and Michael realized that the map was stretched out across his lap. “The drive from Philadelphia to Chicago is not a short one.”

“What’s going on?” Gavin asked blearily, arching his back and letting the palms of his hands touch the roof of the car in a cat-like stretch.

“We still have four fucking hours until we get to the next trial.” Michael muttered bitterly. This was taking forever.

“That’s top.” Gavin said, waking slightly. “Give us rest before tackling the next one. Whatever it is.”

Yeah, we would know what to expect if Jack would tell us about it. Michael tried to bore holes into the back of Jack’s seat with an intense glare. He had been quiet about his trial the entire ride. Judging by the lack of questions from Geoff and Ryan, they already knew. And when directly confronted, Jack had gone completely pale and turned away.

If it had been that bad, it only caused Michael to worry. He didn’t show signs of it. He was a son of Ares; he figured out a long time ago how to hide his anxieties. However, as he glanced at Gavin, it struggled to gain control of his face and mouth, to escape into the air and be heard. However, he shoved it down deeper. Every demigod has his first quest. He didn’t need to interrupt that.

The rest stop was a dingy convenience store, but it would do. Michael pushed his way out of the car, practically over Geoff’s lap, in a desperate need to stand. His joints popped and cracked in protest of their extended confinement, and Michael couldn’t agree more. 

Gavin quickly followed, continuing his feline stretches, arching his back. His eyes lit up when they landed on the little store. “I wonder if they have crisps.” He said aloud, and looked surprised when a few green bills were held out to him.

Ryan had pulled them out of his pocket. “Go buy some snacks for us. I think we deserve it. Michael, go with him.”

“Yeah, I don’t know how American notes work.” Gavin shrugged, taking the money and shuffling through it. 

The store could only be described as grimy as Michael pushed open the door with a disgusted work. A single cashier sat at the counter, looking magnificently bored. His eyes drifted lazily over the two boys, but didn’t react. Instead, he scratched at his chin and flipped a page of the magazine sitting on the counter.

“What did you want again Gavin?” Michael asked, pacing down a row with various candies. 

“Crisps, Michael. Duh.” He called from the next row over in that dumb British accent of his as if Michael was supposed to know what those were.

Pass the candies Michael crouched down in front of a row of chip bags, trying to find the hot barbecue flavor. He rustled one of the bags loudly, moving one out of the way, when he felt Gavin hovering over his shoulder. “Oh you found them!” He chirped.

“These are chips numbnuts. Not—whatever you called them.”

“Crisps. They’re crisps, not chips. Chips are longer and you eat them with fish and tartar sauce.” He continued, his accent seemingly butchering his words worse than usual. He reached over Michael’s shoulder and grabbed a bag of sea salt chips, turning it over in his hands. 

Michael didn’t move, still trying to decipher Gavin’s words. “Wait a minute,” No way. Gavin’s such an idiot. “Do you mean French fries?”

“What the bloody hell is a French fry?”

Their argument was cut short when there was a shout outside that nearly made Michael jump out of his skin. Dropping the bag of chips from his hand, he sprinted toward the door. The first thing he registered when he slammed open the door was Ray sprawled out across the pavement, holding his head. The car was gone, and Jack stood watching over the edge of a ditch on the far side of the lot.

The curb ended in grass, which dipped down steeply until it ended in a deep hill. “What the hell happened?” Michael screamed as he charged out, Gavin at his heels. A ghostly giggle rippled through the air and something almost invisible slipped through the air before it disappeared completely.

At the edge, Michael saw the car turned onto its hood. The door had been busted open and there was a brief flash of horror as Geoff reached in and was trying to pull something out.

“I think it was Taraxippi.” Jack muttered, rubbing his forehead. “They used to be spirits that spooked horses. This one has adapted to modern times, I assume. Spooked the hell out of our van.”

Maybe I should never think again. Michael seriously considered it. He had thought about how easy the van made their quest and now it was gone. Well fuck him. “Is Ryan alright?”

Just as said it, Ryan’s figure slid out of the window. He was upright and conscious. From a distance, Michael could spot a few red lines crisscrossing Ryan’s face, but otherwise he seemed fine. Geoff helped him to his feet and they climbed up the hill.

“Well, the truck is totaled.” Ryan said with a heavy sigh, wiping some blood away from his brow. 

“Now what?” Ray had seemed to recover from where he had been on the ground. Michael could only assume that he had been sitting on the hood when the car came to life. “We don’t have a way to Chicago unless we walk.”

Absently, Jack dug into his pocket, drawing out a golden drachma. “Make a call to Gus?” He held out the coin to Ray, an apologetic smile crossing his face.

Ray scowled and took the coin. “You all messing up my quest, useless.” He said, throwing his arms in the air, but not without a hint of good humor. There was always a catch when it came to quests, Ray had to be more than used to them at this point. “And I’m calling Burnie, Gus will only wring me out for losing the van.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a filler. The next chapter is going to be fun though, I promise. And, again, thanks for all the feedback, it's been amazing!


	18. The Cab from Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day because I felt productive! Also, a familiar face appears at the end. Have fun!

“Well, that is quite the problem.” Burnie’s face swam in the murky sink water. The satyr mouth puckered in the corners and Ray could practically see the cogs working in his brain. “At least you called me.”

“I know.” Ray sighed, pushing his sliding glasses back into place. “He would just be screaming instead of helping.”

“How many drachmas do you have as a group?” It was as if an imaginary light bulb had popped above Burnie’s head, a toothy smile appearing amongst his scraggly beard. 

Ray shrugged. “Jack and Ryan always carry a good pocketful, wouldn’t be surprised if Michael had a few on him as well. Why?” For a moment, the demigod tried to find the satyr’s string of logic before it hit him like a cold wave. “No. Never again.”

“Aw come on Ray,” Burnie sighed. “They probably don’t even remember the last time you rode.”

“I puked all over the seats and swore that I would never take the Chariot of Damnation again.” The son of Poseidon insisted, not wishing to relive his first quest. It had been a series of embarrassing fuck-ups that he wasn’t interested in being reminded of. Especially not puking in the backseat of a rather beaten up cab driven by three mad women.

Burnie shrugged. “Then I don’t know what to tell you. There’s few ways to get to Chicago otherwise. I have someone there that can help you, but you have to get there first.”

Ray frowned deeply. He really didn’t want to, but there was no other way. “Fine.” He huffed and drew a pen out of his pocket along with a strip of toilet paper. “Now who is this guy in Chicago?”

Outside the rest of the demigods were gathered around the ditch, staring forlornly at the smashed truck. Their supplies had been dragged out of the trunk and strapped to their backs, ready for the weary journey ahead.

“We didn’t even get to the second trial.” Ryan muttered as Ray walked up behind them. “How could we fuck up worse?”

Ray cleared his throat to get their attention. “Well, I’ve found us alternate transportation, but you aren’t going to like it. Who has another drachma?”

Ryan, Jack, and Michael all groaned simultaneously as they dug around in their pockets, leaving Geoff and Gavin looking absolutely baffled. 

“Is it seriously the only way to Chicago?” Michael seemed the most displeased, and was also the first boy to pull a golden coin from his pocket. He handed it over to Ray with a bit of hesitation.

“What way?” Geoff and Gavin said in unison, both of them turning slightly pale.

“You’ll see.” Ray rolled his eyes, and with a dramatic flip sent the drachma flying into the street. It landed with a metallic thud and started to sink into the pavement until it disappeared into the depths. Then there was a slight rumbling underfoot and the street seemed to burp up a cloud of smoke. Then the particles snapped into the place in the form of a cab. 

The window rolled down to reveal the grisly face of a woman completely devoid of eyes. “Ahh demigods. I hope your coin is good!” She said, grinning with a toothless smile. The door swung open and Ray glanced over his shoulder. Jack, Ryan, and Michael seemed exasperated. All the color had drained out of Geoff and Gavin’s faces.

“It seems a little small.” Geoff gulped, looking just a touch concerned.

“We’ll be fine. Just have to sit on some laps.” Ray said with a sarcastic smirk and a wink.

The back of the cab ended up being extremely cramped. Ray was smashed against the far window, Jack immediately next to him with Gavin nearly on Michael’s lap, as he was smashed against the other window. Geoff and Ryan sat on the floor, their legs tangled up in a desperate struggle for space. 

“Where to?” The sister in the driver’s seat turned toward them, and Ray gave a slight sigh of relief when it turned out to be the sister with the eye.

“Chicago, as fast as you can.” Ray said, holding out a handful of coins that he had collected between the four of them. Geoff and Gavin, for obvious reasons, had not learned to carry them yet.

“Right away Waterboy!” The sister in the middle said and the cab jolted into motion. Ray squeezed his eyes closed, being sure not to glance out the window. That was what had gotten him sick the last time.

Speaking of that. “Wait, weren’t you the demigods that puked? It took years to get that smell out!” The sister that had greeted them shrieked, whirling around with a deep whiff. 

“It won’t happen again.” Ray muttered through gritted teeth.

“Uhh, I don’t know about how it translates across countries,” Gavin started, his voice shaking. “But you just ran a red light.”

“Don’t worry about it honey, we know what we’re doing.”

“Seriously doubting it.” Geoff muttered under his breath.

“Well, isn’t that rich coming from the demigod that Olympus has—“

“WATCH OUT.” Jack called from the middle, catching the sisters off guard as they swerved just in time to avoid a group of schoolchildren crossing the street. “Please pay attention.” Ray heard Jack mutter under his breath, and Ray tried to calm down with him but found his fingers digging deep into the upholstery.

For a long time, the cab was as silent as it could be. The sisters laid on the horn and talked amongst themselves, discussing the latest news in the mythological world.

“This is the worst.” Ray heard Geoff mutter, his head lolling against the car door. “I don’t even want to know what it looks like outside.”

“Yeah, you really don’t.” Michael muttered and his face had been slowly turning a bit green. The only person that seemed to be enjoying this cab ride was Gavin. He leaned over Michael, watching out the window with obvious rapture. 

“It’s like a sped up tape and slow motion at the same time.” He said absently, a smile arching across his face. “Can’t believe no one else wants to watch.”

Ray rubbed at his clammy face. He would be lucky if he didn’t puke this time around.

It was an eternity before the cab came to a screeching halt. The scenery had completely changed to one of concrete and skyscrapers, the cab itself pausing outside the giant glass monolith that was the Sears Tower.

Hardly pausing, the demigods piled out of the deathtrap of a cab, spilling out onto the pavement. Ray was the last out, pushing Jack and Michael out of the way to stand properly. “Well, that was a ride.” He commented, digging the drachmas out of his pocket.

The rest of the gang had already started to wander to the sides of the massive building, staring up at it in wonder, leaving Ray to address the crazy sisters. “There are for you.” He said, offering them forward.

“You’re too trusting.” Said one sister.

“Thank you for your patronage.” Said another.

“There is a liar in your midst. Watch your back.” Said the last one with the eye.

Before Ray could even formulate a single question, the cab roared to life and disappeared in a puff of smoke. A liar? Ray glanced over at his friends as they had regrouped at the large doors, still mystified by the building before them. You would think being only hours away from New York City would diminish the effect of a huge building, but it didn’t.

“I heard those boxes are made of glass, you can see right down onto the street. That’s freaky as dicks man.” Geoff said, pointing at one of the cases in question on the side of the building.

“I would be so afraid of falling.” Gavin responded, scratching his head.

“Dude, you’re the son of Apollo. You’re made for flying and shit, son of the sun god after all.” Michael shrugged.

“That’s the children of Zeus,” Jack interrupted. “I heard some of them could fly. That would be awesome.” Him and Geoff shared a brief glance before staring back up at the building.

“Hey I know this is cool and all,” Ray felt bad for interrupting, but they were on a tight schedule. “But we have somewhere we need to be.”

The apartment building wasn’t far from where the Gray Sisters had dropped them off. It was almost as swanky looking as the Sears tower with large glass windows facing the street. “This guy can help us apparently. Burnie says we can trust him.” Ray said, feeling a bit self-conscious reading the address from toilet paper.

“Well, if Burnie says he’s cool I’m cool.” Michael said with a shrug and the others nodded along.

They probably seemed strange, a group of kids in bright orange camp shirts, all cramped in a single elevator headed to the tenth floor. 

“We are looking for apartment 1022, anyone see it?” Ray said, and from across the hall, Gavin waved an arm.

“Found it!” He cried, and Ray raced to be the one that knocked on the door. It was his quest, no matter what they had to deal with. At first, there was no response. Only silence greeted the first round of knocking until Ray slammed his fist against the door again.

“I said I was coming!” A voice called from within. It was older than any of them and sounded relatively grumpy, as if he had just woken up despite the fact that it was two in the afternoon.

The door swung open to reveal a skinny man dressed only in his boxers. He had dark hair mussed up in every single direction, but honestly, Ray’s only thought was the appearance of the man. He looked almost like a movie star despite his tousled appearance. 

Then that was interrupted as the man took one look at their shirts. “Nope. Not today.” He said curtly, slamming the door in their face.

“Seriously?” Geoff was the first to cry, throwing his fist against the door again. “Come on, Burnie said you could help us.”

“Son of a whore, what are we going to do now?” Michael said, his face turning a violent shade of red. 

“You’re our only hope right now.” Ray joining Geoff in pounding on the door. “We’re looking for the Rings of Alecto, Burnie said you could help us.”

The door flew open so fast that both Ray and Geoff stumbled to the ground at the man’s feet. “The rings of Alecto?” The man’s voice sounded distant and filled to the brim with disbelief. “They’re real?” Ray felt the man’s hands grab onto his shoulders, dragging him upward. They were almost face-to-face when the kid was back on his feet. “You should have said something sooner.”


	19. Not Just a Pretty Face

It became abundantly clear that Burnie had given this man no warning of the pending arrival of the demigods. The front room was a mess with clothes and old plates strewn about and Ray didn’t want to know what any of the other rooms looked like. However, as they were invited into his home, the man did clear space on the long couch for the group of them.

He stopped midway to the small kitchenette when the rest of the demigods filed into the apartment. “Is that Ryan Haywood?” The man dropped the stack of plates he had been carrying on the counter and pushed his way right past Ray to clap a hand on the obviously confused Ryan’s shoulder. “Come on, I know you were just a kid but damn, you look the same.”

Ryan stared blankly at the man for a moment until his eyebrows almost rose to his hairline. “Joel Heyman?”

They were all plopped down on the couch and Joel came back in with a few semi-clean mugs of coffee. “Sorry, I don’t have much. Today was shopping day until you showed up.”

“If we hadn’t shown up, it sounds like you wouldn’t have gotten up in time.” Ray muttered bitterly, crossing his arms. At first Joel had shoved the door in their face, then changed his mind when the rings were mentioned, however now he seemed to only be bent on wasting their time.

Joel glanced down at him and raised an eyebrow. “Really? You’re gonna say that to the guy whose helping you?” He rolled his shoulders, his mouth set in a straight line. “Fuck you, Camp Half Blood kids are all the same.”

“You used to be a Camp Half Blood kid.” Ryan piped up, a smirk curling at the corners of his mouth.

“Shut the fuck up Haywood, I swear. And I wasn’t just some kid, I was a head counselor from the time I was fourteen.” He flopped down in the armchair across from them. Ray was glad that he had at least had the decency to put on a shirt.

“Head Counselor of Aphrodite cabin.” Michael snorted. He was the only other one among them that remembered the dark haired man with some prompting. Ray always forgot how long Michael had been living at Camp Half Blood. “Managing your sisters was such a chore.”

“My sisters could have kicked your ass any day Michael and you know it.”

Well that explained the good looks. Normally Ray didn’t look at dudes, but damn, child of Aphrodite made absolute sense. Still, that didn’t change the fact that Ray sat with a frown across his face. This guy was supposed to be helping them, not having story time. He had had enough. “You got excited when we mentioned the rings, want to tell us more?”

Joel shot him a sideways glance. “Fine. I was just playing catch up, it’s been a while since I’ve gotten news from Camp Half Blood.”

“Bullshit. You slammed the door in our faces. You wanted nothing to do with Camp Half Blood.”

There was a heavy sigh and Joel put down the mug he had in his hands. “Well, the rings of Alecto were my final, and failed quest. I thought I could handle the trials on my own. I was wrong.”

“Wait, if you had already attempted it, how did you not know we were taking it on?” It was Jack this time that spoke, a voice of reason.

“What started the quest?”

Ray froze for a second, and found all eyes on him. He had collected the party, he was the leader. A pit in his stomach formed when Ray realized that Geoff was probably the only person that knew the whole truth.

“Gus.” It was an easy lie since it was at least partially true. “He gathered all the information that we started out with.”

“See that’s why,” Joel flew his hands in the air. “That crotchety old goat wants nothing to do with me. No wonder Burnie sent you guys in my direction. Do you even know where you’re headed for the trial?”

“We were told Chicago.” Ray said with a huff. “We’re right where we need to be.” A shadow of doubt crossed over him when he noticed a lack of change in Joel’s expression.

“Nope, fucking wrong.” He rose from his chair without another word and disappeared into the next room.

Ray bit the inside of his cheek and glanced over at Michael, who was closest to him. “Is he always this irritating?” Normally it was Michael losing his patience at the drop of a hat and Ray having to calm him down. 

Michael’s only response was to roll his eyes and give Ray a sharp kick in the back.

There was rustling and then Joel reappeared with a box in his hands. “This was everything I gathered when I went looking for the rings. I found the location of five of them, however I never got access to any of the trials.” He shook his head. “I don’t know how you morons managed to get tangled in this, but don’t expect to get anything done. I swear, they are made for very specific people, it’s eerie.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Ray saw Jack fidget for a moment. He pulled his arm out of where it had been squeezed between him and Geoff, and started to dig around in his pocket. “Are they supposed to look like this?” He asked, pulling out the golden ring with the green stone.

Joel’s hands couldn’t have moved faster. The ring was gone from Jack before anyone could blink. “How did you—I mean, I couldn’t even—Wow.” He held the ring up to the light, turning it so the gem sparkled. “Have you tried it on yet?”

Jack shook his head, his eyes never leaving the ring behind his cracked lens. Joel obviously saw this and with much hesitation, handed it back to the ginger. “Which location did you find this one?” He asked, pulling a map out of the box and spreading it across the table. Five X’s marked the page, none of them being in Chicago.

Ray leaned forward and placed his finger on the X in Philadelphia. “It was in some dark cave.”

“Yeah, I know.” Joel said, his forehead wrinkling with thought. “That was the first spot I investigated, but got nowhere.”

“It was in the rock.” Jack said lamely, cupping his hands in the way he had carried the stone torch. “It burst into flames, I was the only one that could carry it.”

“You’re a son of Hephaestus I assume? Guess that means we’re step-siblings. Sort of.” 

“Hephaestus and Aphrodite are married.” Ray heard Ryan whisper to Geoff to his right. 

Joel waited for a moment as if expecting Jack to give more details on the trial, which Ray knew weren’t coming. When it was abundantly clear to everyone in the room, Joel cleared his throat and returned his gaze to the map. “I’m guessing you’re looking for the next closest trial. Well.” He traced his finger down the length of Illinois until it stopped at a small X in the middle of the state. “That’s what you’re looking for.”

“And where would that be?” Ray asked, narrowing his eyes.

“A town called Normal. I wish I was kidding, fucking Normal. What a horrible place to hide a mystical ring, right?” Joel laughed as if that was supposed to be funny. When he realized that no one was going to laugh with him, the smile faded away.

“How are we supposed to get there? Our car was totaled and we don’t have enough drachmas to get there by cab.”

Joel shrugged. “I’ve got enough room in my car. Right before I left Camp Half-Blood, I had some Hephaestus kids help me trick it out. Looks like it can only seat five but handles ten like a pro.”

“Why would you do that for us? You tried to slam the door in our face.” Ray couldn’t ignore the rising suspicion in his throat.

A smirk spread across Joel’s too pretty face. “Normal is not only the location of the next trial, which I would love to witness first hand, but also a college town. Cheap beer!” He said the last word in a singsong voice, jumping to his feet. “It’s a three hour drive, so we might as well start now.”

He disappeared again into the other room, hopefully to dress in actual clothing rather than a t-shirt and ragged boxers. Ray sighed heavily, happy to have his answer finally. Their quest wasn’t a total bust yet. However, one of Joel’s comments nagged at him: They were made for very specific people, it’s eerie. The trials were made for them. Jack was the only person that could hold the stone in the first trial.

Ray had to remind himself that this wasn’t just a quest Gus devised to keep him busy. This was the prophecy at work, this quest was made for him and it seemed the unwittingly Ray had dragged his friends into it. The prophecy applied to them just as much as it did to him. Maybe it was time to stop hiding it, otherwise it threatened to eat a hole in Ray’s stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually did some planning today of the rest of the fanfiction. Just wanted to let you know that you guys are going to be stuck with me for a long time if I continue at this pace. Whoops.


	20. Ten Beads

Gavin did not understand American cars. The wheel was on the wrong side because they were minges and drove on the wrong side of the road. However, he had to remind himself that the only American car he had been in was the van, and that was abandoned in a ditch at a filling station. He had hoped that possibly Joel’s car would bring some resemblance of the UK. Gavin was mildly disappointed when he led their merry little band down to the car park and it was by far smaller. It was blue with darkly tinted windows and a rusted door.

“Is that safe to drive in?” Gavin muttered under his breath to Michael who stood beside him. Michael glanced at him from the corner of his eye, narrowing it in the process.

“Shut up, it’s better than nothing you prick.” He muttered, reminding Gavin of an angry teddy bear. 

“It might seem like a tight squeeze,” Joel said with a flourish of his hand. “However my baby might surprise you.” He pulled out a ring of keys and pressed a black button. There was a click and he wrestled the door open. Jack was the first to venture inside.

There was a slight gasp and Jack leaned out. “I can tell my siblings helped you out, this is pretty neat. Get some help from some Hecate kids as well.”

Joel smirked, leaning against the driver’s door. “Maybe. I’m not giving you all of my secrets or my car would stop being one of a kind.” 

Gavin was suddenly nudged hard in the shoulder. “Well, go on then.” Michael encouraged. “Find out of its safe for me.” The son of Ares seemed to be in a constant state of irritation, but Gavin liked to think he was starting to hear humor in the boy’s tone.

Following Jack into the car, Gavin stopped in a mixture of shock and awe. With a slight stumble, he stepped backward outside the car, glancing around the back and then to the front, before heading back in.

“What is it?” He heard Ray ask behind him, and felt a hand try to shove him out of the way. That only caused Gavin to stumble further into the car. Instead of a backseat that should have seated three people, it could easily fit half of Camp Half Blood with a luxurious rounded seating area. It reminded Gavin of a limousine.

“It’s bigger on the inside.” Gavin said with a wistful sigh, falling back onto one of the plush seats. “Just like the TARDIS.” He said with a gleeful smile, but was disappointed when his gaze was met with arched eyebrows and confused glances. They were more interested in the tricked out car than Gavin’s British pop culture references.

He slumped slightly in his seat as the rest piled in. Behind him, he heard Joel clamber into the driver’s seat. “Sorry to bother your geek session, but I need someone up here to be navigator. I’ve been down this way before, but someone’s gotta read the directions.”

“I’ll do it.” Geoff suddenly stood, slamming the crown of his head on the roof before he stumbled out of the now slightly crowded back and into the passenger seat.

Gavin’s shoulder was bumped as someone plopped down beside him. “There is plenty of room in this car.” He said, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Jack and Ryan sat across from him, already in mid conversation about something. Ray sat near the far window, having pulling out his DS and already plugging away at whatever game he had spent the last few days on. And in response to Gavin’s grumpy comment, Michael spread out as limbs as best he could. Gavin found the boy’s left arm behind his head and one of his legs was stretched out across Gavin’s. “Yup, there’s plenty of room.”

Gavin didn’t try to shove him off.

“Hey, what’s a TARDIS?” Michael asked after a tense moment of silence and Gavin turned to stare at him so fast that he heard his neck crack. Gavin had thought his comment had gone unnoticed.

Gavin spent twenty minutes trying to explain Doctor Who to Michael. It was useless, but it did pass the time. During that time, Michael had disentangled himself from Gavin and finally put some space between them so he could sit sideways, maintaining eye contact through the whole conversation. “So, he’s an alien that can change his face? That’s lame.”

“No it’s not!” Gavin protested, his voice cracking. “It keeps the show going. They can have all kinds of blokes play the Doctor. I’ll have to show you sometime. It’s pretty top.”

Michael threw his arms up defensively. “Okay, okay. We’ll have a marathon night sometime, promise.”

“Brilliant.” Gavin beamed. Despite their rough start, most remarkably the elbow to the nose he had received, Michael had become the best friend he had at camp, and now on this quest. He was a royal pain in the arse, but Michael always meant well.

There was a brief quiet between them, filled with the hum of the other conversations around them. Michael scratched at a spot just underneath the collar of his shirt, pulling away at the fabric to reveal a long line of beads around his neck. “What’s that?” Gavin asked, pointing to them.

“Wot’s what?” Michael returned.

“What?”

“Wot?”

Gavin frowned, catching on to Michael’s joke. “Haha very funny,” He narrowed his eyes, reaching toward Michael’s shirt and pulling it down slightly. “Those.”

“Hey, get a room!” Ray called, causing Gavin to whirl around. The son of Poseidon hadn’t even glanced up from his game.

“Asshole.” He heard Michael whisper under his breath. “They’re beads.”

“Yeah, I can see that you minge.” Gavin snapped, turning back to face him. “What are they for?”

Michael reached around to the back of his neck and there was a click as the necklace fell away from his neck. He held it out to Gavin and placed it into his palm. “They’re camp beads. The rest of the guys, minus Geoff of course, have them too. We get a new one at the end of every summer.”

Gavin held the necklace out, and noticed that each one had something miniature painted on them. They each had a story. Then he scanned the length of the cord, counting them one by one. There were ten in total. “You’ve been at Camp Half Blood a long time.” He said, quieter than he had meant to.

“Yeah.” Michael snatched them back; it was obvious that he was uneasy without them around his neck. “I’ve been around the longest out of all of us. I was six when I, uh, found my way to Camp Half Blood.” He snapped the cord back around his neck. “I started out at Hermes cabin like everyone else until about four years ago when Ares claimed me. Not that it surprised me. You don’t get a temper like this from any god.”

“It’s not so bad.” Gavin said, nudging Michael with his shoulder. “You’re not as bloody tough as you seem.”

Before Gavin could react, he was thrown into a headlock and Michael was burying his fist into his hair. “You wanna take that back ya’ arrow-firing pansy. Beat me in a sword fight and we’ll see whose the toughest.”

Gavin erupted into a series of squeaking noises as he struggled in Michael’s grip, but they dissolved into mad giggles as he fell back onto the seat. Michael’s face had turned a bright red, but he was smiling. “You’re such an idiot.”

“Stop fucking fighting back there kids!” Joel raised his voice above the noise, but in the rearview mirror, Gavin could see the smile on his face. “Don’t be knocking anything over, alright?”

“Fucking maybe but not fighting!” Ray responded with immense giggles, only to receiving glares from the rest of the group. 

“I know you’re a son of Poseidon and all, but can you stop being an asshole for ten minutes?” Michael shot back, his gaze almost dripping venom.

“Nah, sorry man.” Ray shrugged. “It comes with the trident.”

Gavin smiled and leaned back in his seat, listening to his friends bicker. Back at school, his mates were the quiet types that studied and that was the extent of their social interaction. One of the blokes, Dan, had been cool. Honestly, Gavin thought he might like these guys. They were just his type. Loud, dangerous, and a lot of fun.

Maybe leaving with Matt in the middle of the night hadn’t been such a bad idea. Hell, he had been through a lot worse than this. This was a vacation, a much needed one, from the life simply made of poorly executed plans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gave my roommate the choice between a Michael chapter or a Gavin chapter and she said a Gavin chapter, thus this was born. Also yes, I think Gavin and Michael are adorable, sue me. The second trial should come in another chapter or two!


	21. The Second Trial: A Long Way Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh, sorry about the lack of updates. College has been kicking my ass. Anyway, here we go, I finally wrote a chapter. Second triallll.

“You took us to the middle of fucking nowhere.” 

Gavin flinched as Michael’s voice raised above it’s usual rage-level. However, he was completely correct. Joel had stopped his car in the middle of a country road surrounded by cornfields. The night sky loomed over them, the sun having just disappeared behind the horizon, and in the distance red lights blinked on and off like a human heartbeat.

“Those are just wind turbines, so airplanes don’t accidentally crash into them.” Joel had said with a dismissive wave when Gavin had asked when they started to appear. Even if that was the truth, they were like a line of blinking eyes staring at them. He was never too keen about the dark. The lights only made it worse.

“Is this where the next trial is?” Ray interrupted Michael’s inevitable tirade, placing himself between the surly Ares camper and Joel.

Joel pointed his chin in the direction of the depths of the cornfield. “You’ll find a cellar door, probably shrouded from the mortals that own this farm. I found it with the help of a Demeter camper, but I don’t think any of you are of Demeter.” He shot a glance toward Geoff, who stood a little ways from the group. Gavin muffled a series of giggles while trying to imagine Geoff spending time with the airy Demeter campers. He would stick out like a flesh-colored thumb among the green.

Joel cleared his throat. “However, if you are destined for this quest, I have no doubt that you will be able to find it.”

“And you aren’t coming with us?” It was Ryan this time that spoke.

Joel shook his head. “I wish I could, but I have a feeling I won’t be welcome. I couldn’t even open the door after I had found it. Hopefully you will have better luck. I’m off to visit the wonderful town of Normal where there are college girls and cheap alcohol.” A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, and Gavin almost wished he could join in. At least where Joel was going, there would be people and civilization. Instead, they were going into a cellar door to who knows where.

There was a second of silence before Joel snapped out of whatever trance he had been in. “Do any of you have a cell? My number might be useful in the future if you can’t Isis me.”

Ray was the first to produce a mobile from his pocket, holding it out to Joel who input his number. “Seriously, I will be more than happy to help. Just ring me.” And with that, Joel climbed back into his ‘bigger on the inside’ car and drove off, leaving them in the darkness.

“Does anyone have a torch?” Gavin tried to lighten the heavy mood that fell on them, trying to smile despite the suffocating darkness.

“No, we don’t have a fucking torch. What do you want to do? Set the wheat on fire?” Michael snapped.

“I think he means a flashlight.” Geoff muttered, having already moved toward the field before them, pulling aside some of the tall stalks.

“Oh, yeah.” Michael muttered sheepishly, pulling out a torch from his backpack and handing it to Gavin. “Here, you can carry it. Just stay close to me, don’t leave me fucking blind.”

They set off into the field, the stalks stretching well above their heads and into the summer night sky. Almost all torches were focused on the ground in search of the trap door, and Ray, who was at the front of the pack, had his trained on the path ahead. 

“This could take all night.” Jack muttered somewhere to Gavin’s right, with a hint of a yawn tugging at the last word.

“Maybe your ring could show us, like a beacon.” Ryan mused aloud, but there was no motion from Jack to retrieve the said object from his pocket. Everyone knew he was nervous to try it, however the reason behind it, Gavin had no clue. Jack didn’t seem to happy about the quest in the first place, being reluctant to test out his spoils didn’t seem too out of character.

He would have to ask about it later.

“Cheer up mates, we’ll find it.” Gavin called from his place near the back. Michael plodded along beside him and shouldered Gavin when he spoke in a motion to shut up. None of them were up for that. They wanted to find this trapdoor and be out.

It another fifteen minutes until they found something. Well, until Gavin tripped on something. The toe of his trainers hit something solid and hidden in the darkness. All he could manage was a yelp of surprise before he collided with the ground. However, it wasn’t the soft dirt, but rather something rough and wooden that buried splinters into his hands.

“I found it.” He muttered weakly, gingerly gripping his torch between two fingers and directing the beam toward his other hand. Sure enough, several sharp splinters had buried their way into his fingers. 

“Nice job you idiot.” Michael chuckled, heaving Gavin back onto his feet.

“So we won’t be up all night.” Jack said with a hint of relief, directing his torch toward the set of metal handles. “Who wants to pull this baby up?” The edges were rusted together, and Gavin knew he wouldn’t be able to get it open.

“I’ll do it.” Geoff stepped up between them, handing his torch over to Michael.

“Don’t snap your twig arms in half.” Ryan snorted, a smirk on his face.

“I’m more powerful than I look.” Geoff said, not matching Ryan’s smile. He grabbed onto the handles, planted his foot on the edge of the wooden frame, and yanked hard. There was a quick pop of Geoff’s shoulder met with the slam of wood on wood as the doors flung open. “Lead the way.” He flung an arm open, inviting the closest to him, Ryan, inside.

“Jackass.” Ryan muttered, but the smirk remained on his face as he shouldered past Geoff. 

Deep down in the tunnel, it was dark. Gavin shouldn’t have been surprised.

The smell of dirt and earth was overwhelming, almost to the point where he wanted to cover his nose, but he was in charge of a torch and had the back of Michael’s shirt in the other hand. He didn’t want to admit it, but being in the back of the line in a narrow tunnel made him nervous and he didn’t want to be separated. It came as a surprise when Michael made no motion to remove him, instead decreased his pace to keep them together.

“You would think whoever or whatever created this trials,” It was Ray who spoke “Would have a little more creativity. This is the second time we’ve been underground, give us a brightly lit challenge for once.”

“At least I’m not carrying the flaming rock this time.” Jack muttered, which was met with nervous giggles. 

Behind them, the wind whistled above the ground and there was an echoing crack as the doors snapped closed behind them. “Sausages,” Gavin jumped nearly a foot in the air before whirling around. Sure enough the dim light from the moon had disappeared, leaving them with only the artificial light of their torches. 

“We’ll be fine.” Michael said without turning around. “Calm down you idiot.”

They seemed to walk forever; only the sound of the steady drip of water accompanied their footsteps. The longer they walked though, the tighter Gavin’s chest became, as the walls seemed to close in around him. This was like being buried alive. These tunnels could collapse and suffocate them with ease.

“Gavin, stop doing that.”

“Doing what?” Gavin’s voice cracked as he tugged on Michael’s shirt, trying to pull them closer together.

“Hyperventilating or some shit. You’re only making the rest of us more nervous.”

“Sorry.”

_“Sorry,”_ Michael mocked his accent, but this time it was in good humor as Michael stretched to pat Gavin’s hand. “We’ll be fine.”

Gavin closed his eyes and sighed heavily. Somewhere behind them a breeze kicked up, and for a moment, the Brit decided not to think about where it was coming from. 

_“No, please no.”_

The voice washed over him like a wave of ice water, sending every nerve in his body into shock. He froze, his fingers tightening around Michael’s shirt, also bringing him to a halt.

“What the hell Gavin?”

_“Please, I don’t know.”_ Her voice pleaded. _“He’s not here, I will never tell you.”_

Gavin’s lung begged for air. He couldn’t breathe.

Coughing and screaming filled his head; the air smelled of acrid smoke, he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t breathe. 

“GAVIN.”

Michael’s voice severed the illusion so that it unraveled like an old sweater. “What the fuck just happened?”

“Nothing,” Gavin’s voice shook. “Nothing. Just keep walking.” He glanced up; Michael was seemingly the only one that noticed his minor freak-out. There were at least a few yards between them and the rest of the group.

Michael arched an eyebrow but didn’t press for answers.

Gavin numbly stumbled behind Michael for that seemed to be forever. The yellow beam of torches was seared into the back of his eyes, the only light in the damp earthy tunnel. He was hardly aware of his surroundings, only listening for that voice again.

Then he was on the ground for a second time in the last few hours. However, this time instead of landing on scratchy wood, he had toppled over Michael. They were both sprawled on the floor.

“Watch out!” Geoff, who had been immediately in front of them, snapped. They had all come to a dead stop.

“Why the hell did we stop?” Michael yelled from the floor, shoving Gavin away to disentangle them. “It better be good!”

“How does gaping chasm in the middle of the floor sound to you?” Ray’s voice called out.

“What?” Gavin muttered as they both stood, brushing wet dirt from their knees. Poking his head over Geoff’s shoulder, Gavin felt his heart drop into his stomach. Before them was indeed a gaping chasm that stretched further than any of them could jump. The only way across was an old and rotting plank.

“That will not be able to hold all of our weight.” Jack muttered, his eyebrows knitted together. “We’ll have to go one at a time and hope it holds.”

“Maybe that’s the trial. Kind of lame.” Ray snorted, and tentatively placed a foot on the end of the plank. It sagged under his weight but held. Another step. It wasn’t ideal, but the board didn’t seem like it was breaking anytime soon, at least not under Ray the featherweight. 

In under a minute, Ray was across. “There we go. Whose next?” He called across, cupping his hands around his mouth to project his voice. Gavin shivered at the thought, he was definitely not.

Jack was. He was probably the heaviest out of all of them and still the plank held, allowing his across the gaping abyss. Ryan followed, then Geoff, and finally Michael was across without a hitch, only leaving Gavin on the other side.

“Maybe I’ll just head back.” Gavin giggled nervously, his joke only receiving dead stares.

“Come on Gavino, we need to keep moving.” Michael egged him on, waving to the plank in a flourish.

Gavin swallowed hard and placed a foot on the board. It creaked, the sound bouncing off the walls, causing him to flinch.

“Get your ass over here!” Geoff also called, waving his arms.

Gavin took a few more steps. There was a sickening splitting noise. The plank was giving under his weight.

“HURRY UP.” Michael’s voice ripped through the air before suddenly being muffled along with the rest of the world. It was suddenly buried under a curtain of smoke that surrounded Gavin.

His throat burned, he dropped a knee on the board, his eyes meeting with the abyss underneath him.

_“Don’t you dare hurt him!”_ the voice was back. _“Don’t punish my son for my mistakes!”_ There was coughing, the sound of burning, the smell of smoke filled his nose and mouth. He couldn’t breathe. His lungs stung as it rested in his chest, filling him up until everything burned.

The plank sagged deeply under his weight.

“Michael, don’t!”

“Let go of me, I have to get him.”

“You’ll break it, it can’t even hold him.”

Their voices were so far away.

_“GAVIN.”_ The voices melded together, the imaginary and the real. The beam broke beneath him.

“GAVIN.” This time it was one voice. The smoke disappeared, the edge was disappearing fast, he was dropping into the darkness below. Maybe it was better; he would get to see his mum.

“YOUR ARROWS.” Someone else yelled, Jack.

His limbs moved as if he were submerged in honey. His fingers fumbled with the shafts in the quiver on his back. His other hand tugged half-heartedly at the edge of his bow.

Still, he knocked the arrow and released it. There was a snap and Gavin was suspended from the edge of the chasm. The arrow had caught itself just a foot underneath his friends, the rope he had fastened to his wrist caught up from his descent. A sharp pain shot into his shoulder as his arm was nearly ripped out of its socket. He hit the side of the chasm with a thump. 

And there it was, glittering in the darkness. A break in the wall, just big enough for his free hand, and it was waiting for him. He reached in and grabbed the ring.


	22. Four to Go

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter because reasons. Enjoy. c:

Michael nearly threw himself off the edge when he saw the board break under Gavin. At first, the idiot didn’t react. He only fell. It was only when Jack shouted that it brought the kid back to reality. He pulled an arrow out of the quiver and in a swift motion, launched it into the side of the dirt wall. At first, Michael didn’t know what that was supposed to do.

That was when he noticed the rope. It was attached to the end of the arrow and to Gavin’s wrist. The rope broke Gavin’s fall with a sickening pop, leaving him dangling in the darkness.

“Well, get him out of there.” Jack prompted, as Michael was the closest to the edge.

The son of Ares reached down for the arrow, just a foot below the edge and grabbed the rope. In that moment, he was glad that Gavin probably didn’t weigh more than a hundred pounds. He tugged up with all of his strength and had to tone out the panicked yelps that came from below.

The rest of the guys joined in, pulling on the rope that Michael threw behind him. It was a solid minute before Gavin was pulled over the edge, tears streaking his dirty face. 

Michael fell to his knees in front of his friend. “Are you alright?” He said, placing a hand on Gavin’s trembling shoulder.

The boy made a squeak of pain. “I think it’s dislocated.” Gavin hissed out between clenched teeth. 

“Oh shit, sorry dude.” Michael pulled his hand back, a wave of guilt rushing over him. “What the hell happened back there? You just stopped and didn’t do anything until you were free-falling.”

“I heard a voice. My mum’s voice. I just choked up, I guess. It was part of the trial.”

Michael was about to ask how he knew when Gavin held out his good arm and opened his hand. In his palm was a small golden ring with a purple stone. That was when Michael noticed the four others bending over his shoulders to get a good look. Sure enough, it was almost identical to Jack’s except for the colors.

“I guess that’s two rings.” Gavin smiled weakly, but it disappeared with a grimace as he tried to move his arm. “Can someone please get a sling from my backpack.” He finally said, tucking the ring in his pocket and using his now free hand to try and manipulate his frozen arm. All it caused was a hiss of pain to escape from between his teeth.

It was about five minutes before they had Gavin on his feet, his arm in a sling, and were walking again. Michael just about forced ambrosia down Gavin’s throat, but it did little to help. “My shoulder has to be popped back in place, but I don’t want to do it in the dark.” He said, his face almost completely drained of color except for a green tinge.

At least he had stopped crying. Though Michael didn’t blame him for it, he would have too.

“Are you going to try on the ring or are you going to chicken out like Jack?” Michael whispered eagerly, falling into step with Gavin, which had been easier said than done. This tunnel was narrow.

Gavin chuckled, adding some color to his face. “Maybe once my arm is better you minge.” Michael was lucky that he was on Gavin’s bad shoulder side; otherwise he might have had an unpleasant meeting with the wall. 

There was a brief flash of silence as they walked, Michael dancing around the question he wanted to ask. Finally, his stubbornness won out and he didn’t hesitate any longer. “What happened to your mom?” He was tempted to mock Gavin’s accent, just to try and get a smile, but it might have been a bit distasteful in this situation.

In the dim light of the flashlight, it highlighted the gaunt look that overtook Gavin’s face. Dark circles appeared under his eyes and when they locked gazes, Michael’s instantly regretted asking. Maybe that was why it shocked Michael when Gavin responded.

“I was away at Wellsmith’s when it happened. Someone broke into our flat and torched it to the ground, I never had the chance to say goodbye to her. She died in the hospital after they pulled her out of the flames.” The corners of Gavin’s mouth tightened and Michael knew he was fighting the urge to cry again. “I wish I had been there. There had to be something I could have done. I lost my family and my home.” His voice broke and Michael saw a tear roll off his chin.

Knowing that slinging his arm across Gavin’s shoulders would only put him in more pain, Michael maneuvered his hand to wrap around the other boy’s waist. He brought them shoulder to shoulder as gently as he could, just so they brushed. “Camp Half Blood can be your home now.”

“Yeah, for the bloody summer.” Gavin grumbled, using his good hand to wipe at his face.

“Not just for the summer you idiot. You can stay, just wait. I spend all fucking year in Ares cabin along with plenty of other campers. You don’t have to go back if you don’t want to.” Michael insisted, biting his lip. 

For a long time, Gavin said nothing. Then the faint wisps of a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “Hearing her voice made me want to fall into the pit. Sometimes I think without her, without my home, I was a useless idiot. I guess that was the trial,” He glanced over at Michael; the smile was almost bigger than his damn stupid face. “Then I heard you and Jack and I remembered I had you guys. I had to realize that I’m not a pathetic loser after all.”

“Nope. And now you have a badass ring you still need to try on.” Honestly, Michael was downright frustrated at this point with the fact that no one had tried on his goddamned ring yet. He wanted to know what they did, there had to be some mystic power behind them.

“Oh sod off.” Gavin said, putting his hand in his pocket where he had stashed the ring. “You’ll get your turn.” The deep frown that marred Gavin’s face dissolved into a fit of giggles and squeaks. Michael couldn’t help but smile back. How the hell did he get stuck with this idiot?


	23. Demeter's Tunnel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the complete lack of updates. School blindsided me like a truck and brought writer's block in its wake. Anyway, this fic is by no means abandoned, I'm just a bad mixture of inconsistent, lazy, and extremely busy.

This tunnel was never ending. At first, in light of the second ring of Alecto being discovered, everyone had been chattering away like little birds. Adrenaline radiated off the walls of the cave and bounced back, only hyping the collection of teenage boys even more. However, even that couldn’t last forever. As the tunnel stretched on, the excitement evaporated like water on hot pavement and was replaced by a heavy and exhausted silence.

Ryan swung the beam of his flickering flashlight across the floor, sighing as his eyes drooped against the darkness. It was getting harder and harder to place one foot in front of the other. Honestly, they had been on the move since they left Camp Half Blood only days before. Sleep had suddenly become a luxury.

“How much further do you think?” He heard Gavin mutter in the back as he stumbled alongside Michael. The son of Ares was barely holding the skinny kid up while trying to be careful of the dislocated shoulder. Gavin had to be in a lot of pain, but he still refused to let anyone touch the bone. “It’s too dark, do it wrong and it’ll never go back in.” was his argument every time.

In the end, they had been walking too long. It was Geoff that gave in first, sinking against the wall with a heavy sigh. “I don’t know about you, but I’m done.” He muttered, pulling his knees up to his chest.

“It can’t be much further!” Ryan tried to protest, but his knees started to shake with the prospect of rest.

“Sorry Ryan, but I’m with Geoff on this one.” Michael cut in, slowly lowering a trembling Gavin to the ground. “I don’t think either of us could carry on much longer.”

Ryan swung the beam of his flashlight around to Ray, raising an eyebrow. “It is your quest, your call.”

“We might as well rest, we don’t know what could be hiding in these tunnels.” Ray shrugged. “My motto may be YOLO, but I know when my feet need a rest.”

He was outnumbered, so Ryan gave into his aching knees, and collapsed next to Geoff. The cold tunnel floor was soothing against his burning muscles and he realized just how much they had walked. 

“Maybe this isn’t the end of the trial. The tunnel doesn’t stop until we finish it.” Ryan muttered, leaning his shoulder against Geoff’s.

“Maybe it’s just a long ass tunnel. Either way, we need sleep.” Geoff yawned, his eyes already closing. “Worry about this when we wake up.”

At first, Ryan rolled his eyes, watching as the flashlight clicked off one by one until his was the only one cutting through the darkness. He wouldn’t be able to sleep, his skin prickled with anticipation of something to emerge from the darkness, but it never happened.

As soon as he flicked off his own flashlight, darkness washed over all of them and Ryan was asleep.

When he woke up, his foot was in a puddle. The dark, chilling water had seeped through his sneakers and soaked his socks. Above his head, the drops were still dropping from the ceiling with a constant, mind-numbing dripping noise.

As he moved, Geoff gave a loud snort and opened one of his eyes. “Is it really time to get moving?” he asked, sounding as if his mouth was full of cotton.

“No,” Ryan whispered, noticing through the darkness that no one else moved. “But I have an idea, do you still have that CD you brought for the car?”

“You mean the one we didn’t get to listen to right?” Geoff muttered, still half awake.

“Yeah, yeah. That one.” Ryan held out his hand as Geoff rustled around blindly in his backpack until he pulled out something vaguely square shaped. Ryan snatched it from him and popped the case open.

“What are you going to do with it?” Geoff’s words were slowly getting more coherent as he leaned over Ryan who pulled out his flashlight. 

“I have a few questions for Joel. Maybe he knows what’s going on.”

It took a few minutes. As a kid, he had done many science projects. One had involved reflecting rainbows off various surfaces, one of the easiest being a CD. However, this time he had to angle the sparkling colors over the tiny puddle and close enough that the shadows didn’t devour it.

Once it was perfect, he maneuvered Geoff into position to hold it. “Now don’t let it slide off or the call could be disconnected.” Ryan instructed, digging a golden drachma out of his pocket. 

He let the coin slide out of his hand and into the water. It disappeared into the depths of the puddle, which should have only been millimeters deep. “Calling Joel Heyman.” Ryan muttered, and the water shimmered at his command until the young man’s face appeared before him.

Behind him was a blur of movement, people passing by, he was in a public place. “Make this fucking quick before people start to think I’m crazy.” He whispered harshly. 

“You’re already crazy Joel.” Ryan snorted, which only received a cold stare.

“It’s dark. Where the hell are you?”

“Still in the tunnel. It goes on forever. I was hoping you would know what was going on.”

“I guess the rumors are true then.”

Ryan clenched his fist, ignoring the desire to see if it was possible to punch someone via Isis message. “What rumors?” Why didn’t Joel inform them sooner?

“Demeter’s Tunnel. They connect the major cities in the Midwest; she had to be able to get from one set of fields to the other. It wasn’t called the breadbasket of America for nothing.” Joel stroked at his chin, a manic smile spreading across his face. “If the rumor is true, the next exit should be around St. Louis.”

“No wonder this has gone on forever.”

Joel nodded. “Well, at least its convenient. St. Louis should be the next trial location.” Ryan sighed heavily but smiled, at least this was working out in their favor. “My only warning though,” the son of Aphrodite spoke up again. “is that something guards these tunnels. I don’t know what, but knowing Demeter, it is something gross and creepy crawly in nature. Watch out.”

The image on the water flickered and died as Geoff’s hand slipped. “Oh, sorry!” His voice cracked as he scrambled to try and get the beam back in place, but it was too late.

“It’s fine.” Ryan said, lowering his brother’s hands. “We have to be ready for a fight. Get everyone up.”

When the group had been forced awake and watched Ryan with at least one eye open, he relayed the information Joel had given him. Ray seemed to be the only person enthusiastic about it.

“Good, I was getting kinda bored.” He smirked as he pulled the piece of his trident out of his backpack and snapped them into place. 

“Gavin, we really have to snap your shoulder back into place. We need you in fighting condition.” Geoff said, standing above him and Michael. He reached down to touch the smaller boy’s swollen shoulder, but he pulled away.

“No, no.” He shrunk against the wall. “Michael can do it.”

“What?” The red-head sputtered, turning to face his friend. “Dude seriously, let Geoff or Jack or basically anyone but me do it.”

Gavin turned to him, pale-faced and grimacing. “Why? I trust you.”

“Don’t. Ares kids are notorious for being terrible healers.” Michael laughed nervously, wringing his hands. “I am the last person you want touching your shoulder.”

“All you have to do is push down on it until it pops back into place.”

Ryan knew there was a bit more than that, but Gavin was simplifying it.

“Once it’s back in the socket, some ambrosia will take care of the pain.” Gavin reached for Michael’s hand, and when he didn’t fight back, placed it on his bad shoulder.

“Give it a good, right push you sausage.” He smiled wearily.

After a moment of hesitation, there was a grunt from Michael and a loud pop, and Gavin twisted his shoulder, shuddering at the pain. “At least it moves.” He said through gritted teeth. “Wasn’t too hard right?”

“R—Right.” Michael said, seeming almost shakier than Gavin. 

Ray smiled and slapped Michael on the shoulder. He also began to do the same to Gavin, but thought better of it at the last second. “Let’s see what Demeter has in store for us then Lads.” He said, almost too excited about the prospect of a fight.

“Lead the way then,” Ryan said, moving aside to let Ray up to the front. “I’ll be right behind you.” All of a sudden, he was organizing them all. “Jack behind me, get your weapon out and ready. Michael you’re in front of Gavin. Geoff, can I trust you to bring up the rear?”

Geoff glanced up; in his hands was the sheath of the blade Jack had given him. He played with it nervously, but nodded.

“Good,” Ryan said. “We have to be ready for anything that gets thrown our way.”


	24. Dances with Worms

Tension crackled through the air. All of the hair on the back of Geoff’s neck stood up and refused to flatten. No one spoke, the only sounds were their muffled footsteps and the occasional sharp exhale as someone tried to calm their frayed nerves. For the first time since his encounter with Hermes, Geoff had pulled the engraved dagger from its sheath. It felt awkward in his hand, like it didn’t belong, but still he clutched onto it for dear life. 

If something did attack them, Geoff could only hope it came from the front. If he was forced to be the first line of defense, they were dead as dicks. 

“Come on Ryan!” Ray’s voice echoed from the front of the line. In the lowlight, Geoff could see the impatient kid raise his trident into the air. The three sharp prongs scraped across the ceiling, showering them with dirt and pebbles. “I thought you said there was going to be a fight. Got me all excited for nothing.”

“I said there might be a fight. Honestly, I would rather emerge unscathed from this mess.” Ryan answered, almost sounding disinterested. His trembling hand that clenched what looked like a pocketknife betrayed him.

“Then you shouldn’t have gotten—“

The floor shook underneath them. Geoff hit the ground without a chance to break his fall. His head hit the packed dirt and the world spun. The others toppled over around him. The ceiling trembled and chunks of mud and silt dropped onto them.

“What the hell?” He heard Jack gasp, desperately coughing against the dirt that clogged all of their throats.

That was when Geoff saw it out of the corner of his eye. It headed toward them like a bullet train, two terrifying teeth creating the doorway into a dark, gaping mouth. Its long, white body writhed as it moved at an impossible speed across the floor.

It ploughed into Ray, Ryan, and Jack before they could recover, throwing them against the walls. Geoff closed his eyes, preparing himself for the inevitable as his legs refused to work. This was it, he was going to die being crushed by a giant worm. Never would have crossed his mind in a million years.

However, the pain never arrived. Well, not in the way he had been expecting. Instead of being hit by a thousand pounds of worm, shattering his bones, his eardrums shattered instead as a piercing metal clang echoed off the walls. 

Michael had recovered just in time. Out of thin air, a huge ass shield appeared and had stopped the terrifying worm in its tracks. “Gavin, you idiot, get out your goddamn arrows!” he snarled, straining against the effort of holding back the twisting beast as it fought against the sudden barrier.

Behind it, Ray was the first to climb to his feet, brandishing his trident. He sunk the three prongs deep into the worm’s flesh. 

It reared its large, ugly head in the direction of its attacker. From the side, Geoff got a good look at its terrifying fangs, one on the top and one on the bottom. It dove for Ray, snapping those gruesome teeth.

A blade drove deep into the side of its neck, a long silver sword with an alarmingly red handle. Ryan’s pocketknife. He tugged at the blade as the worm lunged for him, pulling it free just in time to dodge the creature’s mouth.

That was when Jack stepped in. At first, in his hand was a hammer, one that Geoff could’ve found in any toolbox. He raised it above his head and if he wasn’t completely panicked, Geoff would have laughed at the absurdity of it. Then the hammer grew until the face was the size of a frying pan. Jack brought it down on the worm’s head with a sickening crack.

It soundlessly reared its head, if it was capable of noise, Geoff would have expected screaming. Then it disappeared underneath the dirt, creating a hole big enough to swallow two of them.

Underneath their feet, the ground trembled worse than before, but they were prepared. Geoff crouched down, his heart pounding against his chest; his fingers ached around the hilt of his blade. They could all feel it underneath them, retreating from the fierce adversaries at the front to the back.

The easier prey.

A spray of mud erupted in his face, blinding him instantly. Every ounce of blood in Geoff’s body ran cold as through the wave, he spotted the yellowed and stained teeth going straight for his throat.

He couldn’t move.

The world slowed. Jack assured him later that he screamed like a girl, but for Geoff it was complete silence. The worm burst from the floor, never hesitating to charge at the tattooed quester. It unhinged its jaw, creating a gaping black hole, the last thing Geoff would ever see.

The arrow whizzed past his head, nicking his ear as it flew. It sunk deep into the worm’s mouth and through the back of its head. This time, there was a screech but Geoff couldn’t be sure if it was from him or the worm. 

“What the fuck?!” Those words did come from him as Geoff scrambled out of the way at the last moment to avoid the collapsing giant worm. The creature gave one last feeble tremble before lying still, the arrow stuck out of the back of its white flesh. 

Geoff gracelessly landed on his ass in the dirt, his back knocking into Gavin’s legs. The Brit stumbled backward, yelping as Michael caught his shoulders, moving the recently relocated one roughly. Finally, Geoff peeled his fingers away from the blade, the one he failed to use, and delicately touched his ear. Blood ran down the side of his neck and soaked into the collar of his shirt.

“That was fucking close. Nice shot Gavin.” Michael sighed, and all at once the tension was gone. “Nice teamwork everyone.”

“I did nothing.” Geoff muttered. He glanced over his shoulder as one by one the weapons disappeared. Ray wiped the prongs of his trident off on his shirt and disassembled the pieces, stuffing them into his backpack. Ryan made a face as he tried to shake the worm goo off his sword, effectively splashing Jack’s legs as he shrunk his hammer back down to manageable size. 

Michael’s giant shield seemed to melt away until a small, silver coin rested on the cave floor. The son of Ares picked it up, tossed it lazily, and stuffed it into his pocket. Even Gavin appeared unaffected by the monster they had just faced, slinging his bow across his back, laughing as Michael made a joke.

Geoff slowly worked his way off the floor, sheathing his dagger with trembling fingers. “Good job everyone!” He tried to brighten up his tone, being sure to clap Gavin on the good shoulder. “Thanks for the back up there, even if you did slice my fucking ear.”

“Sorry ‘bout that.” Gavin said, turning a little red in the face. He delicately peeled his backpack off his shoulders and dug around for a second. “I have plaster in here somewhere.” He said, pulling out a Band-Aid. “This should at least stop you from ruining your shirt.”

There was a minute of exhausted silence as Gavin struggled to pull the wrapping off the bandage and Geoff was forced to stoop down as it was applied to his ear. 

“Let’s go!” Ray called impatiently. “If that thing attack us, that means we have to be near the end.” He started at a jog, huffing as the path took on an incline.

Everyone fell into line. They hardly wanted to keep Ray’s pace, but they were all too tired to argue with their leader. Gavin rushed on ahead, surprisingly, to ask Jack about his weapon. Geoff had to admit as well, it was pretty damn cool. He would have joined in the admiration, if Michael didn’t cut him off.

“Nice work back there Ramsey.” At first the words were teasing, but it had a venomous undertone. “I know you’re new and all, but quests can fail because of one person. I’ve seen it happen.” His eyes slipped in Jack’s direction for a brief moment. “Get your shit together, or this will fall to pieces.”

“Oh fuck off.” Geoff muttered, clutching the sheath of the dagger. He wanted to draw it on Michael, but he knew he didn’t have the guts. 

“Where did you get that anyway?” Michael asked, eyeing the weapon.

“Jack made it. He gave it to me before we left camp.” Geoff said a bit sharper than he had meant. He shoved the sheath back into his pocket.

“It’s got a funny engraving, like a lightning bolt. Strange for a son of Hermes.” The son of Ares arched an eyebrow but said no more. He picked up the pace, falling in beside Gavin, his foul mood disappearing as the Brit squeaked and danced a few steps ahead.

A pit formed in Geoff’s stomach. Jack knew, Michael was suspicious, and if Ray and Ryan found out-- he didn’t want to think about it. Maybe he wasn’t to underestimate the children of the god of war, as much as they appeared as a bunch of meatheads. Then again, what was a son of Ares doing fighting with a shield?


	25. Powers of Alecto

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is my baby, I just neglected it for a while because school. All of my writing effort has gone into academic papers lately, so finally I had the chance to sit down at write this. I'm back guys! (:

The tunnel slowly transitioned from mud, to packed dirt, and finally warped into concrete as the sound of cars echoed from above. “We must be under a road.” Ray muttered, glancing up at the ceiling. At least it meant that they were near the surface. Geoff was getting claustrophobic. 

As they progressed, the walls around them transitioned from black to gray as light started to slip in from the surface from a round crack in the ceiling. It glinted off the metal rungs of a ladder, which the boys took gleefully to the surface. 

The hot summer sun bared down on their faces and normally, Geoff would want to complain but after the dark, damp, and cold tunnel, this was a blessing. All around them was a flourish of activity. Cars bustled down the road, buildings towered over them gleaming in the sunlight, and people passed by without a single glance in their direction.

And Geoff nearly laughed his ass off when he took a good look at their rag tag group. They were covered from head to toe in dirt, looking more like a bunch of thugs rather than demigods. It was hard to tell that their t-shirts had been orange in the first place.

“I vote we get a hotel. Everyone needs sleep—and showers.” Ray suggested without much room for argument. Everyone nodded wearily, happy for a place to rest before they set on the grueling chore that was finding the next trial.

Finding a hotel wasn’t difficult, when Ryan plopped a few bills down on the table there was little argument against letting a bunch of smelly teenagers into a room. They probably looked like a school trip gone awry.

The room was small, but no one complained. “Before anyone lies down on those beds—“ Ryan’s words stopped Michael right in his tracks. “Seriously go shower, we need to share them.”

There was a grumble, but no one protested. Instead, everyone plopped their shit onto the floor followed by their butts. Ray took the shower first, claiming that since he was the son of Poseidon, and inherently good with water, he would shower the fastest.

What bullshit.

Gavin had plopped down beside Geoff, playing with the ring he had gotten in his trial, but not slipping it on his finger.

“Not going to try it on buddy?” Geoff asked, watching it roll over in his palm for a sixth time.

Gavin shrugged. “Makes me nervous.”

“Hey Gavin, take off your shirt.” Ryan said, which surprised them both as the son of Hermes loomed over them. “I want to take a look at your shoulder. I work with children all day, I know some first aid.”

There was a moment of hesitation, but Gavin slipped the ring back in his pocket and pulled off his shirt. Underneath, his shoulder was a mottled mess of colors from bright red, dark purple, and snot yellow. It looked like an atrocious mess to Geoff.

Ryan scrunched up his face to one side and unzipped Gavin’s backpack, digging out a bag of ambrosia. “I don’t know how much this will help. That’s a pretty nasty bruise.”

Gavin didn’t say anything and took a square. He popped it in his mouth and the swelling went down but the awful bruise remained. “Still hurts like a bitch.” He muttered under his breath, shoving the bag back at Ryan.

Ryan shrugged. “It was worth a shot.” He threw the bag back into the backpack and crossed the room to where Jack was sitting, nursing his ankle, which looked pretty bruised. He was complaining about it on the way to the hotel. He thought he twisted it when the worm slammed him into the wall.

Again, Gavin pulled the ring out of his pocket. Geoff’s eyes widened in surprise as he watched the boy finally slide it down his finger. For a moment, it glowed purple and then nothing. Honestly, he was a bit disappointed.

As was Gavin. “Well then.” He held his hand out, examining the ring. That is when Ryan, Jack and Michael noticed it as well but said nothing. Then his attention was diverted when his shoulder twitched, making Gavin pale slightly. Lightly, he let his fingers trail over the bruises.

Geoff glanced down at his own hands, which had collected their own bruises over the last few days. Before the end of this quest, Geoff could only imagine what everyone was going to look like.

He was dragged out of his thoughts when Gavin squeaked, and Geoff nearly snapped his neck turning it so fast. The bruise on Gavin’s shoulder glowed purple, the same color as his ring, the lights twisted and turned over the skin like waves. Then, as the light faded, so did the bruise until nothing but pink skin remained.

“Did the ring do that?” Ryan demanded, jumping to his feet.

“I dunno, I guess!” Gavin squeaked, a goofy smile stretching out across his face. “I should try it on Jack!”

“I don’t really want to be a guinea pig!” Jack started to protest, but Gavin had already crossed the room and placed the ringed hand onto Jack’s ankle. The same purple light wrapped his skin, pulsing until the swelling was gone and the bruise had faded into nothing. “Okay, that’s cool.” Jack let out in a rush of breath he had been holding.

Gavin was practically bouncing by this point. Geoff ended up being his next experiment as he pulled the bandage away from his ear. Apparently the ring healed cuts as well.

It was at this point that Ray emerged from the shower. “What’s with all of the noise?” He asked, drying off his hair.

Geoff rose stiffly to his feet. “I call the shower next. Gavin can explain it.”

He could still hear the excited squeaks through the running water as Gavin recounted his newfound abilities with the ring. However, he drowned it out in favor of the pleasure of hot water running over his dirty skin. The floor of the tub was already disgusting from Ray washing off, but honestly, he couldn’t give a damn.

They hadn’t showered since they left Camp Half Blood, and sleeping in a tunnel didn’t help.

After washing out the tangles in his hair and making sure his body was clear of most dirt, he stood for five minutes just enjoying the hot water. Occasionally he sloshed his feet in the water to make it sound like he was moving around, but if he had the chance, Geoff would have stayed in that shower forever.

When he finally peeled himself away from the hot water and into a towel, he pushed into the main room to Jack and Ray giggling madly while Ryan, Michael, and Gavin glared at him.

Ryan stood up and stuck out his tongue. “I hope you didn’t waste the water just standing around.”

Geoff clamped his hanging jaw closed. “How did you—“

Jack had stopped giggling long enough to hold up his hand. He too had been brave enough to wear his ring. “Now I can keep track of all you losers. Everyone gets their own special outline, and I saw that yours wasn’t moving for a while. It isn’t nice to waste water Geoff!” 

“Please, never spy on me again when I’m in the shower.” Geoff said with a glare, digging fresh clothes out of his backpack. They reeked of damp mud, but at least they were covered in it. 

“Okay, okay.” Jack waved him off, his laughter finally subsiding.

“Can you see anyone else?” Gavin suddenly asked, twisting his ring around his finger.

Jack glanced around the room, but then shook his head. “There has to be people outside, but I can’t see them. Only you guys. It must have to do with the trials.” Jack said, looking almost relieved. Geoff could only guess how overwhelming it would be if he could see everyone. It would just be one big blur of color.

“Man, you guys make me want to get my ring right now.” Michael said, eyeing Gavin’s jealously.

“You’ll get yours after your trial!” Jack called and Geoff flinched.

He didn’t want to think of what his trial will be.


	26. The Fall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hahah it's midnight, I am responsible college student with too many ideas. After writing the chapter earlier today, this scene was plaguing me. It needed to be written. Enjoy! Also sorry about triple Geoff chapters, it'll switch next chapter promise.

Watching the three lads trying to squeeze onto one bed was nothing short of hilarious. They were going to sleep just yet, but there was a quiet that hung in the air that punctuated just how tired they all were from their adventures. This was the first true break they have had in days. Yet, Geoff couldn’t stand still. Ryan was the one who noticed.

All of a sudden, there was a flash of green over Geoff’s vision as couple dollars were hung in his face. “There’s a convenience store just down the street, how about you snag us some food?” Ryan said, and Geoff nodded, grateful for the chance to move.

“What does everyone want?” Geoff called out which was matched with a garbled mess of requests from chips, to chocolate, to soda, and just about everything else. 

“Want someone to come with you?” Jack perked up from polishing his weapon.

Geoff shook his head. “Nah, I’ll be fine. It’s just a block, I can manage.” With that, Geoff was out the door and out of the hotel. He was happy for a moment’s worth of peace from the others. It had been a while since he could walk alone with his thoughts. So much shit had been happening that last few days, that he was glad that he didn’t have someone breathing down his neck.

However, he didn’t manage to hash out a single thought before there was someone breathing down his neck. Geoff whirled around on his heels to face the follower, and barely caught a glimpse of the salt and pepper hair before Geoff was swept off his feet by a blast of wind.

The world moved in a blur of black and gray underneath him, Geoff couldn’t tell for certain how far he was off the ground. Wind burned his face and tore at his clothes that whipped and snapped around him. He tried to struggle against the pull, but it was useless, it dragged him through the air like a piece of newspaper.

Then it was over. He looked straight ahead, his gaze meeting a beautiful nighttime skyline of St. Louis. This instantly made Geoff regret looking down. The ground was hundreds of feet below him and the only surface separating Geoff from his plummet to his death was a thin strip of steel. He was only a foot or so away from the drop.

With a gasp, he stumbled backward and landed with a thump on his backside. He was on the top of the fucking St. Louis Arch. There was only one person that could pull this off.

A hand grabbed a hold of Geoff’s shoulder, pulling him roughly to his feet. “Did you really think you had seen the last of me?”

“For Christ’s sake I’m not even your kid! Go harass Ryan or something!” Geoff spat, sharply turning his head to stare Hermes right in the eye. The god smirked, not releasing Geoff’s shoulder.

“I claimed you as my own to keep your friends from discovering your secret. You owe me some respect.” Hermes stepped toward the edge of the Arch, forcing Geoff alongside him. “You wouldn’t want Poseidon’s brat finding out you’re the prime candidate for his murderer.”

Geoff’s heart sank. He didn’t need to be reminded of that fact.

“Then what do you want from me?”

Hermes laughed. “Well, the longer you survive the more Zeus is going to increase his efforts to end your life. The harpy and the lightning is only the beginning, there is more to come and now your friends will get dragged along for the ride.”

“What can I do about it?” Geoff felt a pit forming in his stomach, threatening to swallow him whole.

“Godly genetics are good for one thing and that is power. Zeus kids have a lot of it. You need to learn how to use these skills so they may give you a chance to survive.”

Geoff scrunched up his nose, examining Hermes’s face for answers. The god had a great poker face. “Why are you doing this? Gods hardly give a shit about their own kids, why do you care about me?”

The smirk fell away from Hermes’s face. “You are going to be important to Olympus Geoffrey, in ways that even most of the gods on Olympus cannot foresee. I just want to make sure you survive to reach this potential because I am afraid of what will happen if you don’t.”

Geoff couldn’t tell if the god was jerking his leg or not, but it didn’t help the pit in his stomach. It twisted when the smirk returned to Hermes’s face. “Well, it’s time to see if you have a talent for the wind or not. Enjoy your fall.”

Before Geoff could even register what was happening, the god stepped off the edge of the arch and dragged Geoff down with him. “What the fuck?!” Geoff managed to scream over the roar of wind over his ears as Hermes disappeared, leaving him to free-fall to his death.

“Sonnuvabitch!” Geoff cursed as he flailed. Hermes said something about a talent for the wind. Were Zeus kids supposed to be able to control the wind, was that what he was supposed to do? The ground was fast approaching, and Geoff felt like an idiot for doing this but it was his only choice. Better to look stupid and die trying than to hit the ground like a bug on a windshield.

Geoff closed his eyes and took a deep breath. To control the wind he had to concentrate right? He imagined the breeze sweeping him away. It would gently lower him to the ground without injury. He just had to imagine that right? Geoff squeezed his eyes tighter as he knew the ground was fast approaching. He thought so hard that his brain practically screamed at him.

That is when the wind hit him like a hurricane. It blasted against his body and threw him sideways through the air. The water felt like a brick wall when he hit it and for a moment, he was too stunned to swim to the surface but when his breath ran out, he kicked his way up.

When he broke the surface, Geoff glared at the shore where Hermes stood. “That was a dick move, you know that right?” He hollered at the god, waving his fist. The god must have blasted him into the water at the last second to avoid the inevitable demigod death.

Hermes cupped his hands over his mouth. “That was all you kid!” And with that, the god disappeared in a blur, leaving Geoff to tread the water alone.

Geoff had to admit, once he was back on land, this flying thing was really damn cool. Again, he closed his eyes and thought of the wind moving underneath him. To his surprise, his feet left the ground. He was unsteady at first; nearly crashing back into the pavement several times before he was able to balance.

Then he went higher and higher, testing his abilities to move the winds in the direction of the hotel. It was only minutes before he landed beside the doors, and a headache pounded against his skull. He had thought of nothing but the wind, the sheer concentration he had used wore him out. At least his clothes had dried.

Not caring that he never went to the convenience store, Geoff climbed the stairs back to the room. He only had to knock once before Jack answered. “You have been gone for an hour, we were about to send someone out looking for you!” He said, his voice high with worry.

“I’m fine.” Geoff waved him off, kicking off his shoes.

“Where’s the food?” Michael quipped from his spot in the bed, smashed between Gavin and Ray. 

“Sorry, forgot.” Geoff muttered, fishing the slightly damp dollars out of his pocket. He handed them over to Ryan who looked absolutely bewildered. “Long story, sleeping now okay?”

He knew he couldn’t tell the others the truth. Well, maybe Jack but that was it. He would need to devise a clever lie in the morning when his brain was working again. As he flopped down on the bed, a hidden smile spread across his face. He could fly. Despite everything that had happened, he had to admit that that was cool as dicks.


	27. Poor Son of Hermes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SUMMER IS HERE. That means I will be updating a bit more often so maybe, just maybe, I will finish this fic before I have to go back to school. That would be ideal.

“The map says the next trial should be somewhere around here.” Ray mumbled, holding the map up to the sun, which shone through, only making his attempts to read it worse.

“Well, then I guess the fucking map is fucking bullshit.” Michael shouted, waving his arms wildly at the sign in front of them. He was quickly drawing the attention of the tourists that were walking by.

“It’s led us in the right direction for the other two rings.” Jack said with a shrug. The green stone on his ring glittered. He hadn’t taken the damn thing off since last night.

“You fucking serious Jack? How could this be right? It’s fucking mini golf!” Michael was near screaming now, turning red in the face, but Ryan had a feeling that half the time it was for show. Ares kids had to keep up a tough front to impress Daddy.

“Well, they aren’t going to let in a bunch of teenage boys without money.” Ryan mused, staring at the admission sign. With the amount of money they had left, they could maybe afford two people in, but there was no way to be certain whose trial this was. Jack and Gavin were out of the running, but that still left Ray, Michael, Geoff, and himself. Also, he was pretty certain they didn’t accept drachmas.

Over the fence, Ryan could see the various gimmicky plastic, pastel statues and obstacles. However, his eyes landed on what seemed to be the center of the course. Standing high and tall above all the others was a castle with a single pointed tower. Now, the tower probably only stood a few feet above Ryan’s head, but it was probably the best place to start.

“Hey Ryan, the evil genius guy, you have a plan?” Ray demanded, glancing up from a collection of bills in his hand. He had probably been reaching the same abysmal conclusion Ryan had about their lack of money.

Ryan shrugged. “Well, we are a group of reckless teenagers aren’t we?” He asked and he was only met with blank stares. “It’s simple. We break in after the course closes. Let’s be delinquents.”

They moved around for a few hours to avoid being accused of loitering and watched for the mini golf course to close. “You know,” Jack muttered as they circled the block again, “I really like mini golf. I hope this doesn’t ruin it for me.”

That was when Ryan noticed the distinct lack of people on the course. “Must’ve closed, I think it’s our turn to play.” A wicked grin caught the edge of his lips, making Geoff shudder.

“You’re creepy as dicks dude.”

“I try.” Ryan said, glancing in both directions down the street. The sun was going down and the foot traffic had declined as the hours went by. No one seemed to be around to notice. There were no cameras. Honestly, the place looked too run down for any real security.

Their only mode of security was one giant padlock on the front gate. Ryan dug around in his back pocket and pulled out his bright red pocketknife. With one flick of the wrist, he could slash this lock in half with the sword. However, even he wasn’t that evil when he could just pick the lock.

It only took a second as the others practically breathed down his neck, trying to catch a glance. 

There was a satisfying click and Ryan slipped the lock off. “See, I think we make very capable delinquents.” He chuckled.

“Well, we have Ryan the psychopath, Geoff the street kid, and I’m Puerto Rican, so I think we have a great start.” Ray deadpanned, trying to keep down a smile. “Come on, let’s find that ring. Can’t be that hard?”

They had to split up.

Everything on the course seemed to have its own set of nooks and crannies to hide things in. Gavin and Michael headed in the direction of the food court, promising to grab whatever snacks they found. It wasn’t exactly helping the quest, but Gavin already had his ring and Michael didn’t exactly want his challenge to take part in a mini golf park. He wanted something more grandiose.

Ray and Geoff wandered off in the direction of a giant and slowly rusting hippo in a tutu. Ray was doing a half-assed attempt at a pirouette as they walked away. That left him and Jack. “Do you want to check out the death-trappy looking castle or should I?”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll deal with it. You can check the clown statue, I don’t like the way it’s looking at me.”

Jack nodded gratefully at the suggestion and made his way over to the slightly terrifying clown. Turning toward the castle, Ryan walked over to the door. The tips of the towers were only a few feet above Ryan’s head; the moat door creaked underneath his feet as ducked through the entrance. If he didn’t duck, it would’ve smashed him in the forehead.

However, once he was inside, he stopped dead. Ryan had expected just an empty plastic shell, something that reflected the cracked and worn outside, and he would bang his head if he stood any taller.

Instead, Ryan was able to straighten up completely. The room that surrounded him appeared to be a throne room, complete with a red carpet and giant gilded chair. On the plush seat sat a crown and cloak. “Hello?” He called to the empty room, only to have his own voice echo back. “What the fuck?”

He peeked his head back outside. “Hey, you guys should check this out!” He shouted, but to no response. No one heard him. Ryan hesitated a moment before pulling his head back in and taking a few steps further into the chamber. It was like a pocket dimension, completely separate from the real world. It definitely didn’t belong in the decrepit plastic castle of a rundown golf course.

As he walked toward the throne, the silence of the room amplified every little noise he made. Each step reverberated off the walls, the sound of his breathing and heartbeat roared in his ears. 

_“Poor son of Hermes,“_

Ryan nearly jumped out of his skin. He whirled around to face the door, but there wasn’t another soul in sight.

_“Poor son of Hermes, he has always wanted to lead a quest.”_

Again, he whirled around and saw no one. “Show yourself!” He called to the emptiness, curling his hands into fists.

 _“Poor son of Hermes, he has always wanted to lead a quest.”_ The first voice repeated.

 _“Poor son of Hermes, so unimportant, so insignificant, he never will,”_ a second voice chimed in, mocking him in an almost sing song voice.

“Stop it!” Ryan shouted at the voices. Something in the back of his head tried to tell him that this was possibly the trial. Jack and Gavin had heard voices as well. However, this wasn’t the first time Ryan had heard these comments.

 _“Only children of important gods receive quests. Children of Hermes are a drachma a dozen.”_ The voices began to taunt in unison. _“Every child is Hermes until they are blessed by the claiming of another.”_

Ryan tried to cover his ears to block out the voices, but they continued to bombard his brain.

_“Ryan wants to be important. Ryan wants to be strong. He doesn’t want to be bossed around anymore.”_

The voices were right.

_“Poor son of Hermes should put on the crown.”_

Despite himself, Ryan turned to glance toward the throne. Blue jewels, which decorated the crown, glittered in the flickering candlelight. 

_“The son of Poseidon is inept to lead this quest. He is nothing but a child with an important daddy. It does not make him important.”_ The voices were almost singing at this point. He was no longer in control of his feet. Ryan started to walk toward the crown.

 _“No one cares about children of Hermes. No one wants to be a child of Hermes.”_ An image of Geoff flashed in front of Ryan’s eyes. The way he hid his hand after being claimed, and the way he looked guilty every time Ryan tried to bring it up. He was ashamed of being claimed by Hermes because Hermes was not important. His kids were shoved into a rundown, crowded, little cabin. They were belittled as thieves and troublemakers, the scum of the camp.

He was standing before the throne, his fingers only inches away from the silver surface of the crown.

 _“Put on the crown, poor son of Hermes, and change everyone’s mind.”_ The voices chorused in unison. _“Don’t be afraid. You are done being afraid.”_

His fingers touched the cool metal and everything went dark.


	28. Blue as Ice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters, I'm on a roll. Also, in the future I might be rewriting and editing some of the chapters for content I want to use in future chapters. I will make notes if and when any of these changes become relevant! Thank you all for the encouraging comments and I'm glad you're all enjoying this fic!

The clown statue was terrifying up close. Jack almost wished he had taken the castle. Nothing around it stood out. The only place a ring could possibly be hiding was a pocket in its oversized spotted pants, but when Jack reached inside his fingers came out dusty and covered in old, chewed gum.

“Disgusting,” he muttered, trying to shake the sticky pieces off. In the process, he almost missed Geoff walking over. He glanced up at his friend and shook off the last piece of gum. “What’s up?”

Geoff shook his head. “Is this a trial in our patience? This feels like a wild goose chase.” The sun had started to disappear behind the horizon; it would leave them in the dark soon. 

Jack glanced over Geoff’s shoulder and spotted Gavin and Michael on the far end, rooting around in the mouth of a giant crocodile. Ray bounced around, dodging the lazily spinning blades of a windmill.

“Where’s Ryan?” Geoff eerily echoed Jack’s exact thoughts.

“He went to check out the castle but hasn’t come back yet.”

“Shouldn’t take that long to search a plastic castle. Think he wandered off?”

Jack glanced down at his ring. “I can always check.” At first, he had been disappointed in his power. Gavin’s was a healing touch, which was immediately useful. However, the more he thought about it, Jack figured his power could be of some use.

Everyone on the quest had their own aura of sorts: a colored outline that Jack could spot from a distance, even through solid walls. When he twisted his ring, a flash of orange automatically blinded him. Geoff’s outline was almost overpowering when he stood so close.

Gavin was outlined in purple, his aura practically bending toward Michael who shone with gold. Ray was heading in their direction, radiating and sparking with red like rose petals. Just out of the corner of his eye, Jack could catch glimpses of his own shimmering green.

Ryan’s aura was a dark blue like the night sky. However, as Jack glanced toward the castle he could automatically tell something was off. “It’s ice blue.” He said under his breath and Geoff narrowed his eyes.

“What?”

“His outline, it changed.”

“It’s not supposed to do that?”

“I don’t think so.”

Jack broke into a dead sprint toward the castle with Geoff at his heels. “Hey Ryan, are you okay in there?” He shouted, ducking to avoid hitting his head on the low entrance. “We’ve been looking—“ His voice trailed off as the room before him stole his breath. 

This wasn’t the inside of a cracked, plastic castle. No, this was the interior of a real castle with marble floors and columns. A red carpet stretched out underneath his feet.

“What the fuck?” Geoff’s voice cracked behind him as he caught up.

At the end of the red carpet was a golden throne. On the throne was Ryan, a silver crown on top of his head. 

“What the hell are you doing up there Ryan?” Geoff called and Jack didn’t miss the suspicion in his voice.

There was a crack behind them as a door that shouldn’t be capable of closing snapped shut behind them. Ryan’s gaze snapped up to meet them, glittering as dark and cold as the stones on his crown. Jack shivered at the aura that radiated off his frame. It was as white like ice and spread in twisted tendrils. 

“Hey, Ryan you’re being extra creepy right now.” Jack stuttered, trying to laugh but his teeth chattering ruined it. “Say something before I’m scared shitless.” Ryan did dumb shit like this all the time. He loved to watch younger campers squirm when he played his psychopath persona. It was all one big joke to him.

Jack had a feeling the joke was over.

Without a word, Ryan pushed himself from the throne. He staggered for a second, shaking his head as if trying to wake from a dream, but then went rigid. Only his right hand moved as he pulled out his pocketknife. With the flick of his wrist, the deadly blade melted into existence. 

“Ryan, what the fu—“ Geoff started to walk forward but Jack swung out his arm, catching his friend in the chest to stop him in his tracks.

“Something’s wrong.” He whispered through gritted teeth, reaching into his back pocket for his hammer. “Get out your dagger and stay close to me. I don’t want to have to hurt him.”

Geoff gulped, but did as he was told. 

Jack let his weapon hang out his side. He had no intentions of harming Ryan, but if he lashed out, Jack would have no choice but to defend. He took a cautious step forward, his eyes never leaving the frozen tendrils that snaked away from Ryan. Everything about him was off and it set Jack’s teeth on edge.

“Poor son of Hermes,” Ryan’s voice echoed off the walls of the hall, slipping down Jack’s spine like ice water. He picked up his blade and stroked a hand down the face. “The child of a thief. No one wishes to be the child of a thief, it makes them no better than dirt.”

Jack felt his heart sink at his friend’s words. His voice was distracted, as if he wasn’t there at all. “No one says that Ryan,” Jack took a few more steps forward, closing the gap between them. And instantly regretted doing so.

The tip of the blade was at his throat. “They don’t need to.” The sharp point found Jack’s skin, pressing until there was a pinprick of red. “I can read it on their faces. I can hear it behind their words.”

“Ryan, you’re not thinking straight!” Jack tried to say, but his words were scrambled as Ryan slammed his knee into his stomach. The movement was so quick and unexpected that Jack fell to his knees, struggling to breathe. His hammer slid out of his grip, skittering across the floor.

Out of the corner of his darkening vision, Jack saw Geoff move. He darted to Ryan’s right, brandishing his dagger. He meant to knock the sword out of Ryan’s hand, but the son of Hermes was too quick. 

Ryan swatted Geoff out of the way like an annoying bug, sidestepping him and slamming the flat of his sword into the other’s side. Geoff stumbled away, cursing under his breath.

Jack took Geoff’s distraction and dove for his hammer, pulling it out of the way just before Ryan’s blade could meet his wrist. 

In his hand, the hammer twisted and grew until Jack willed it to stop. Normally, he fought with the head almost the size of a frying pan, but it made the weapon awfully slow. Jack had known Ryan’s fighting style long enough to know that he would automatically go for the killing blow if given the chance.

Jack needed speed if he wanted to live.

Ryan tsked at Jack’s fighting stance, shaking his head. “Jack, I thought you would understand. We are not children of the big three, or even of Apollo, Ares, Athena, or Aphrodite. They are important. They are the ones in stories. No one cares about us.” Despite his cold gaze being locked on Jack, it seemed to far away. “I am tired of them being the heroes,” his eyes darted toward the door. Jack could see the outlines of Gavin, Ray, and Michael headed their way. “Maybe it’s our turn.”

He twisted his blade in his hands. “They wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“That’s crazy talk Ryan!” Geoff blurted out, eyes wild with fear.

Ryan whipped around to face Geoff. “You!” He snarled, taking a slash at Geoff who barely stumbled away in time. “You are part of the problem. You hide your claiming like it is an embarrassment.” 

Jack’s stomach twisted at the words. It wasn’t his claim by Hermes that he was hiding. 

Before Jack could react, Ryan took another swing at Geoff and made contact this time. The blade sliced through the sleeve of Geoff’s shirt, splattering deep red blood across the cobblestone floor. His dagger fell from his hand as he grasped at the wound with a shout.

“Enough!” Jack barely recognized his own voice as it ripped from his chest. He rushed forward and managed to land a blow on Ryan’s back, sending him sliding across the throne room floor. 

Ryan lay there, stunned, for a moment before staggering to his feet.

“You’re not thinking straight Ryan!” Jack tried to reason with him, but words were difficult when he was dancing out of the way of a blade. 

“No, I believe I am thinking clearly now.”

Jack threw the handle of his hammer between his face and Ryan’s sword, his arms aching with the force it took to keep the sharp edge away from his face. Digging his feet into the floor, Jack forced Ryan back with each agonizing step. “Please, listen to me! You’re Ryan, counselor of Hermes cabin. You don’t care that kids are placed in Hermes cabin because you get to be their mentor. You care about those kids more than anyone at camp. Hell, you care more than their godly parents ever have.”

As he spoke, something seemed to flicker behind Ryan’s glassy eyes. Then the Hermes camper bared his teeth and pushed hard against Jack’s weapon, throwing him off balance. It was over.

Ryan’s blade met Jack’s side, slicing through his skin as if it were cloth. The warmth of blood was first, running down his waist and soaking into the hem of his shorts. Second was the pain. Blood boiling, agonizing, twisting pain. His hammer clattered to the ground as his hands rushed to the wound, trying to get all that blood to stop. Jack fell to his knees, his eyes darting to Ryan standing above him, holding his sword for execution.

“Ryan, this isn’t you!” Jack cried out against the pain. “Please.”

It was like a switch flipped on in Ryan’s head. His eyes darted from his sword to Jack’s wound, and to the blood that dripped onto the floor. The sparkling ice aura slowly melted into a familiar dark blue. One by one his fingers peeled away from the hilt of his sword and it clattered to the ground at Jack’s knees.

“Oh no.” Ryan’s voice echoed as he took frantic steps away from Jack, tripping over his own feet to land on his backside. The crown fell from his head, rolling away across the floor. “I—I did that?” His voice cracked, burying his head into his arms. He was shaking.

Jack tried to stand, to get to his friend, but Geoff reached him first.

The tattooed camper crouched down beside Ryan, slinging his good arm across the son of Hermes’s back. “Hey, you’re alright. We’re alright.” He muttered.

Ryan lifted his head to stare Geoff in the face. “The problem is that they were right about one thing.” His voice shook and he shrugged off Geoff’s arm. 

“Who were right?”

“I thought you would be excited to be in Hermes cabin, but instead you act like you’ve been marked for death.” Ryan was trying his hardest to sound angry, but his voice cracked and Jack could see tears in the corner of his eyes. “Why?”

Jack watched Geoff’s face. This was it; he had to tell the truth. 

The door was busted down in shards of broken plastic. “WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED IN HERE?” Michael screamed. “Two of you are bleeding what kind of bullshit is this? There isn’t even enough room to get a paper cut, much less fight something.”

The three gents glanced around the plastic castle to find the throne room gone. Instead they were sitting on hard, artificial grass surrounded by a shitty plastic castle.

“Ryan, I could never be ashamed of being your brother.” Geoff smiled, gripping Ryan’s shoulder. “Don’t ever think otherwise.”

“Goddammit Geoff,” Jack muttered through gritted teeth as Gavin and Michael helped him to his feet. 

“Hey, look at this.” Ray said as he bent down and picked something up off the ground. “Ryan, I think this belongs to you.” He tossed something silver and blue to Ryan, who caught it. He held it up for the others to see. His ring.

Outside of the now partially destroyed castle, Gavin healed up Jack’s wound, leaving only a twisted pink scar. Jack watched as Ryan slowly returned back to normal, Geoff even managed to weasel a smile out of him after a few minutes. However, the longer the two sat close, the knot in Jack’s stomach became tighter. Geoff was only digging himself into a deeper and deeper hole.


	29. Power of Persuasion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am the most inconsistent author ever and I apologize.

Ryan rolled his ring between his thumb and forefinger. He had yet to put it on. With a twinge of guilt, he watched Geoff and Jack shift stiffly with Ray between them. They were discussing the map in low whispers. The son of Hermes forced his gaze away from the obvious tears in their clothing where his blade had sliced them. Gavin had fixed up the wounds but shiny, pink scars still remained as a reminder of a shared challenge.

_I hardly deserve this,_ Ryan thought as he stared at the blue gemstone. He had attacked his friends and Jack was the one to draw him from his delusional state. The voices had assaulted his mind and Ryan let them take over.

“What does it do?” The voice nearly made Ryan jump out of his skin. Gavin had plopped down next to him, skinny legs stretched out in front of him. In one hand was a half-unwrapped burger and in the other was a delicious-smelling bag that he held out to Ryan. 

“I don’t know Gavin, I haven’t put it on yet.” Ryan snapped, even though he didn’t mean it. He slipped the ring into his pocket and retrieved a burger out of the bag. 

Like after every trial they needed to figure out how to get to the next one, and they weren’t going to do that with empty stomachs. So they stretched out onto the curb of a greasy diner with maps and burgers to plan their next move.

Gavin had scooted away a few inches after Ryan’s curt reply, but that didn’t stop him from talking. “Hopefully it’s something bloody cool. I mean Jack’s and mine are useful but not awesome.” He twisted the ring around his finger. He hadn’t taken it off since he put it on.

Ryan shrugged and took a bite of his food. He struggled to keep from rolling his eyes as he felt someone else sit on his other side.

“If you don’t stop looking so fucking glum, I’m going to punch your stupid face.” Michael threatened through a mouthful of a food. “I mean, what’s a little bloodshed between friends? I broke Gavin’s nose the first time we met and look at us now. He’s my boi.”

It was obvious that Michael was trying to cheer him up but it wasn’t working. Ryan rubbed at his temple and stood slowly and tried to ignore the two pairs of eyes following his every movement. “Just leave me alone, okay?”

He walked away a few paces and was relieved that they did not follow. The ring had started to create two red marks where it pressed into the skin of his fingers as he rolled it. He hardly noticed.

Ryan managed about ten minutes of peace before the deliberation over the map ended and Geoff walked over, clapping a hand on Ryan’s shoulder. “Our next stop is Austin, Texas. I’ve always wanted to go to Texas!” His brother said with mostly faked enthusiasm.

“Good to know,” Ryan muttered, his eyes locked on the ring stilling rolling between his fingers.

“I don’t know what happened Ryan, but it doesn’t matter. Just cheer up, make a joke, something.”

“I hurt you and Jack. How am I supposed to cheer up?” There had been a moment of relief after the trial where it hadn’t mattered. He had smiled and perked up, but then the gravity of what had happened settled in. He had attacked his friends because a stupid voice had told him to.

He had attacked his own brother because he was in shock over his claiming. Ryan couldn’t blame him, Geoff hadn’t been given the time to adjust. Anyone sane would be a little slow to process this madness. Ryan couldn’t blame his new brother in the slightest.

Geoff sighed and crossed his arms. “You need to talk about this Ryan or it’s going to eat you alive. Everything you said, none of it is true. You know that right?”

The ring slipped, sliding into place on his finger. There was a dull, icy twinge in his knuckle as he turned to glare at Geoff. “I don’t need to talk about it. Just, shut up okay?”

Geoff opened his mouth as if to argue before his normally sky-blue gaze flashed a deep shade of royal. Slowly, he closed his mouth and nodded, walking back over to the others that were collecting their backpacks. 

Dread slid down Ryan’s throat like early-spring slush, chilling him to the bone. He glanced down at the ring on his finger, the blue stone sparkling coldly in the sunlight. Did he do that? He looked back up to watch Geoff’s retreating back. The power of persuasion. That was his ring’s ability.

With a deep shudder, Ryan ripped the ring off his finger and shoved it back into his pocket. He thought of Gavin and Jack’s rings and their newfound powers. Jack could see these auras, know where they were at all times, and after his last quest this gift was probably gods-send for him. Gavin was given the ability to mend wounds with a single touch, only enhancing his natural talent for healing. 

The power of these rings said a lot of their users but Ryan didn’t want to think about his. 

_“Poor Ryan wants to be important. Ryan wants to be strong. He doesn’t want to be bossed around anymore.”_

The voices echoed in his head, already a memory he tried to push deep down in the dark. The ring would give him the ability to seize this quest for his own, to take control like no child of Hermes could before, he could be important.

Except, he didn’t want to take it. Ryan wanted to earn it.

However, as he stood there staring at his friends as they readied for the next step in their quest, he couldn’t bring himself to toss the ring. _After the trials I will destroy it,_ Ryan thought clutching the cool metal in fist before letting it go once more. He would use it to finish the quest and that will be that.


	30. Lightning Round

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And to make up for being so damn inconsistent, have two chapters. A third is actually already halfway done so that's something.

“This isn’t Harry Potter kid, I can’t take these gold coins whatever the hell they are.” 

The person at the ticket window passed Ray back his golden drachmas. Turning back toward his friends, he shrugged. “It was worth a shot. We don’t really have any actual money left, especially not enough to get us to Austin. Any new ideas?” He asked the group as they walked away.

When they figured out their next stop was Austin, they found the quickest way from St. Louis was by train. Too bad they couldn’t afford the train fare. 

Geoff plopped down in the station chairs, taking up two as he stretched out his legs. “Well, we have four hours until the next train arrives. Do was have time to get the money?”

“We’re a bunch of grubby fucking teenagers, we can’t scrape together that kind of coin.” Michael grumbled, plopping down next to a sullen-looking Gavin.

“I thought we were going to get to ride the train. They’re bloody awesome.” He sighed heavily, resting his chin in his hands. 

Geoff glanced over at Ryan who shifted from foot to foot. He had been quiet the entire walk over to the station. Honestly, he had almost been silent since the trial. When he had tried to talk to his friend, Ryan just brushed him off and now every time Geoff went up to him, he couldn’t find any words.

There was no explanation for it.

“Let me go talk to him,” he suddenly piped up, stuffing his hands inside his pockets.

“What are you going to do? Turn on some psycho charm?” Ray teased, but nodded toward the booth. 

As Geoff watched Ryan walk back, Jack jumped to his feet. “I’m going to go find some food. Looks like we’re going to be here a long time regardless.” There rarely seemed to be a moment that Jack wasn’t hungry.

Tearing his eyes away from Ryan, Geoff climbed to his feet as well. “I’ll come with, no use just sitting around.” Glancing over his shoulder, he got one last glimpse of Ryan leaning over the counter and Geoff noticed a blue dot on his finger.

“Yo, has Ryan seemed weird to you since the trial?” Jack asked as they walked out of earshot of the others. Geoff turned around to face his friend.

“Of course. But you were weird after your trial and so was Gavin.” Geoff shrugged. “He needs space just like you did. Though it doesn’t give me confidence about my trial to be honest.” He tried to laugh as did Jack, but there wasn’t a genuine smile between them.

Outside the station, the summer heat was upon them and Geoff pulled at his dirty camp t-shirt. There was still a massive rip in the shoulder from where Ryan had slashed him and Jack had a matching tear in his side. “Maybe this store will have some cheap shirts. I know we aren’t the only ones that need it.” Geoff shrugged as they found a 7-11. 

However, Geoff never got to step foot inside. The wind kicked up, grabbing at Geoff’s hair and wind. “What the—“ He glanced up at Jack and noticed the wind failed to even move a hair on his friend’s head. The realization hit him like a tornado. “Oh fuck.”

He snapped his eyes closed and tried to fight against the wind as it pushed against him, attempting to drag him away. This son of a bitch wasn’t going to drag him away again. His attempts proved futile when the world blurred and resettled somewhere completely different. No Jack or store in sight.

“You’re really doing this to me again?!” Geoff roared before he even caught sight of the smug god. He held up a hand to block out the overwhelmingly bright lights that washed the empty warehouse floor white. “Haven’t you fucked with me enough?”

The god sat on a crate and uncrossed his legs, hefting his staff onto his shoulder. “Well, I had until you got into a little fight with my son.”

“Aren’t I your son as well?” Geoff snorted, crossing his arms. As it turned out, it was a bad idea to get smart with a god.

What Geoff had thought was Hermes’s staff struck his side, a crippling shock made his muscles spasm and he was down on his knees before he could blink. “Seriously dude?” Geoff spat, wincing as his muscles seized up.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve trained a hero. I forgot how much fun this is.”

“Is that what this is?” Geoff slowly rose to his feet and got a good look at Hermes’s weapon. It was a simple metal bar with a black box that sparked ominously. Hermes gripped the padded grip, unaffected by the electrical charge. “Are you attacking me because your son is crazy? Which don’t get me wrong, I love Ryan but—“ Geoff whistled, rolling his eyes.

He really did care about Ryan. It didn’t mean he couldn’t piss off his dad.

“Most gods would smite you on the spot for talking back,” Hermes twirled the pole, pacing around Geoff to strike again. “But I appreciate the spunk. And no, this isn’t because you attacked my son but he attacked you. I know you just arrived at Camp Half Blood but that is no excuse for the son of Zeus. No wonder he is disappointed in you when you can’t even fight.”

Geoff gritted his teeth and reached into his pocket for his dagger. God or not, this douche was getting on his nerves. 

Geoff had barely managed to draw his dagger when Hermes struck again. The shock charged through Geoff’s knee and he crumpled to the ground. “That was a cheap blow!” He howled, swinging his dagger wildly. “Also, why the fucking electrical charge?” He said, struggling back to his feet.

“I think you know why. I can’t train you to fight with that dagger in an evening. That takes years of practice. Instead, I can teach you to use something a bit more innate.”

When Hermes went to strike again, Geoff danced out of the way of the hit using the tiniest breeze he could muster. Could this building have stronger air conditioning? It would really help.

It wasn’t long though before Geoff was hit again and was on the floor again. This time the pole had struck him in the head, causing his vision to dim for a second before returning. “At least hit me where the bruises won’t be noticeable.” He muttered, climbing to his feet again.

“Then learn faster,”

On the next strike, Geoff took a deep breath. He remembered when Jack and him were almost struck by lightning. How his body had practically absorbed the energy, his tattoos glowing like neon. In this moment, he needed this. 

The pole rushed at him with blinding speed. In one hand, Geoff clutched his dagger and the other he reached to catch the blow. As the energy coursed through his arm, his tattoos became blinding blue with the charge. Pain ripped through his flesh as if it were melting away from the bone.

Geoff meant to direct the charge to his dagger, but it quickly overpowered the young demigod. The dagger exploded from his grip, whistling past Hermes and burying the blade into the steel wall. “I wouldn’t suggest touching the walls for a while,” Hermes whistled, almost sounding impressed. With a slight flinch, the god removed the weapon from the wall. “Now, that’s what I’m looking for. Let’s try that again.”

“No way, that fucking hurts.” Geoff rubbed at his arms before he snatched the blade back from Hermes. 

With a smirk, Hermes glanced at his wrist and raised an eyebrow. “Your train leaves in three hours. I’m not letting you out of here until you figure this out.”

“We don’t have tickets,” Geoff said, which only made Hermes’s smile bigger.

“Yes you do, my son is very capable with some assistance.”

Geoff didn’t even want to know what that meant. “Fine then, hit me again.”

For what felt like the thousandth time, Hermes struck out with his pole. Geoff caught it in his hand, his tattoos flared to life, and pain like none other rippled through his entire being. His body threatened to shut down for the thousandth time, exhausted from the constant electrical current that threatened to overpower him.

However, this thousandth and one time, it finally worked. Geoff caught the pole, the electricity surged and his tattoos turned a blinding blue. Gripping his blade tightly in the other hand, Geoff willed the charge to the blade. A mixture of relief and shock filled him as the electricity sparked from his weapon, nearly knocking his godly opponent backward.

That was when the blows subsided and Geoff let his blade drop to his side. “There, I did it.”

“Yes, you did.” Hermes said, a self-satisfied grin plastered across his face. “Maybe you’ll be useful in the end.”

“Useful to who?” Geoff grumbled. As the adrenaline ebbed away, he was almost overwhelmed by exhaustion.

“That is the question, isn’t it?” Hermes smirked as he messed with the black box on the end of the pole. In a swift movement, he ripped it off and tossed it to Geoff.

With shaking hands, the demigod barely caught it without fumbling.

“You’re not good enough to produce the charge on your own. Don’t worry; you’ll get there but until that point think of this as a supplement. Turn it on and you’re ready to go.” 

Geoff turned the little black box over in his hands. “Why are you doing this for me?” He couldn’t help but wonder out loud. In response, Hermes just shrugged.

“I have to have some mystery. I am a god after all.” He looked too youthful for a man with gray hairs. “Now, let’s get you back to your friends before they miss you.”

Before Geoff could ask any questions, the god whisked him away again so he stood outside the train station. The clock above the entrance warned him he had about twenty minutes before the train left the station.

He walked in to find five pairs of concerned eyes.

“Where the hell did you go?” Jack demanded immediately, drowning out the rest of the voices. “One second you were behind me and then you were gone.”

“I realized I had left something behind at the station and went back.” The others glanced at each other, never having seen him. “And then I got lost trying to find my way back. I was too stubborn to ask for directions, sorry.” The demigod shrugged and the rest of the group begrudgingly accepted the lie, much to his relief.

“Well,” Ray said, interrupting the Geoff interrogation session, holding a ticket out Geoff. “Ryan managed to use his creeper charm on the dude at the counter and got us our tickets. We’re headed to Texas.”

“And I thought I had enough of this heat.” Michael threw his hands up in the air.

“American weather is bloody insane.” Gavin agreed heartily. “You’re telling me it gets worse?”

“This is going to be fun.” Geoff piped up. He was no stranger to the South after being from Alabama. “I hope you fuckers are ready.”

There was a collected, but good-natured, groan as they made their way onto the platform. Except for Jack, who caught Geoff’s eye. “That wasn’t the whole story.” His friend whispered. It was almost eerie how quickly he caught on to Geoff’s lies. Then again, he was the only one that knew the whole truth.

Geoff fished the black box out of his pocket, cupping it so only Jack could see. “I’ll explain later.” He answered, actually excited to share this little secret.


	31. Next Stop: Austin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have had this chapter half-finished since early August and only just got around to finishing it because I am dumb. Short because college.

“Hey Micool?”

Michael forced his heavy eyes open to glance to his left. Gavin leaned against the window, staring out at the dark landscape as it ran, blurred, beside them. “What Gavin?” He answered, fighting off a yawn.

“Do you miss home when you’re at camp?”

Adjusting out of his sleeping position took more effort than it should have. The last few days had taken a toll on them all and Michael had been glad for a few moments of uninterrupted, safe sleep. Gavin seemed to have other ideas.

The sun had gone down an hour or so ago after they had gotten on the train. Somehow Ryan had charmed his way into six discounted tickets using drachmas the booth attendant originally wouldn’t take. As Michael always said, he had some weird voodoo powers. The rest of the gang had been using this opportunity as one to catch up on sleep.

The three gents were already sound asleep. Ryan had his head leaned against the cold, glass window. Geoff drooled onto his shoulder while Jack had his head thrown back as far as it would go. One of them was snoring.

Michael, being in between Ray and Gavin had tried to sleep too. However, Gavin seemed hell bent on keeping him awake while Ray’s DS continued to make small noises as he played.

“Sometimes, I guess.”

Gavin turned to glance at Michael; a mixture of concern and sadness filled his eyes. The son of Ares couldn’t help but notice the small bruise that still blemished the bridge of his friend’s nose. A reminder of the day they met. Michael absently wondered why Gavin hadn’t tried to heal it.

“I got homesick at Wellsmith’s all of the time. When my mum died, I tried to make it home but it didn’t work.” Gavin sighed, sinking low into his seat.

“Well, Camp Half Blood is my home now. Though, sometimes I wish I could go back to living with my mom but my stepdad doesn’t like me too much.” Michael itched at his nose. He rarely talked about his home life, which caught the attention of Ray who had slowly begun to put away his game. “He thinks I’m a violent blockhead. I guess he’s kinda right,”

“Awww, don’t say that Micool. You’re my lovely little blockhead.” Gavin smirked, rubbing his friend’s shoulder. 

“Thanks Gav,” Michael rolled his eyes but smiled. “The mean, old man thinks I go to boarding school for troubled kids. The joke’s on him.”

“I went to boarding school, it’s not as minging as you think.” The Brit protested, though he didn’t think a boarding school for trouble kids didn’t sound too fun. His had been for the wealthy and obnoxious. When Michael laughed, Gavin turned to Ray. “What about you? Do you stay at Half Blood for the year?”

Ray snorted. “And hang out with you losers all the time? No way. I go back to living with my mom during the year. Though, I live in New York City so I visit during my breaks. Also nothing is better than my mom’s cooking.”

“Maybe you should invite us then,” Michael teased.

“And what? Share my food with you losers? No way.” Ray barked out a laugh, opening his game again. He slid down in his seat into what could only be described as poor posture.

Michael yawned again. This time he didn’t even attempt to hide his exhaustion. “I’m going to sleep for a while Gav-o. You should too, seeing this is the first time we might sleep uninterrupted.” The redhead shifted sideways, practically pressing his feet against Ray’s leg and leaned on Gavin’s shoulder. “Well, knock on wood.”

Gavin quickly turned his head to stare back out the window. Rain had started to drizzle down, creating little trails that wound their way down the glass. “Nah,” he said, “I don’t think I can sleep.”

“Okay,” Michael muttered, closing his eyes.

There were a few moments of peaceful sleep until their compartment door slammed open. Michael started, along with most of the other demigods that had been peacefully sleeping. Even Gavin woke with a start, nearly causing Michael to fall into his lap.

“Oh, sorry!” A thick accent said. A tall, thin figure stood in the doorway, looking just as stunned as the group of groggy teenagers. “I must have the wrong carriage. I apologize.” The man tugged at his pristine suit, straightening out the collar.

“It’s fine.” Geoff was the first one to break the silence. He promptly rolled over, burying his face into a battle-ready Ryan. Michael spotted the bright red pocketknife in his hand. 

In an almost imperceptible motion, Michael watched as the tall man’s eyes flickered toward Ryan’s weapon before backing out of the doorway. “As you were,” The man said, closing the compartment door slowly. It clicked close and it melted the tension.

Geoff was already snoring.

Gavin and Jack were quick pass out as well. Ray, who hadn’t been asleep before the intruder, finally put aside his game and slumped as far as he could in the seat. Michael, however, couldn’t bring himself to close his eyes. Ryan seemed to be in the same camp.

“Michael, walk with me?” Ryan whispered and jerked his head toward the door. He slowly lowered Geoff onto the seat, careful not to disturb him.

Michael nodded and carefully maneuvered out of his seat to avoid waking Gavin. Ray opened an eye as they passed him but didn’t move to follow. He just stretched his legs into Michael’s now vacated seat with a smirk.

“I can tell you didn’t like that dude,” Michael decided to get right to the point.

“How can you tell?”

“You’re still holding your pocketknife.” Michael bumped his hand into Ryan’s, noticing the white knuckles that protected the precious weapon.

Ryan gave the pocketknife a brief flip, the blade flashing in and out of existence, before pocketing it. “There was something off about him,” he muttered, glancing toward his wrist. “I mean, who wears a pristine suit on a train at three in the morning?”

“Pricks, that’s who.” Michael laughed, trying to ease the tension but it did nothing. “Come on Ry, we will drive ourselves crazy if we don’t get sleep. Like I know you’re already crazy, but we don’t need insane.”

Ryan rubbed his temples. “Yeah, I know. It’s just—“ he paused, staring into the empty corridor ahead of them. “Something has felt wrong about this quest from the moment we began. I just can’t put my finger on what.”

Michael yawned, stretching his arms above his head. There was a satisfying pop in his shoulders. “You’re just over thinking things Ryan.” He said, but didn’t quite mean it. Something was off. All six of them knew it. “Let’s just head back to the others and get some well-deserved rest.”

Those words died in Michael’s throat as a rumbling echoed through the empty corridor. A shadow stretched across the wall as something emerged from the compartment ahead. It wasted no time as a golden furred creature came barreling toward them. 

“Well, never-fucking-mind then.” Michael cursed under his breath as Ryan drew his blade.


	32. That's a Good Kitty

“Don’t come any closer!”

“Ryan, I know you have some weird voodoo power but it doesn’t work on monsters!”

“Michael, get your ass back here right now!”

“FUCK NO. It’s too fast I have to go get my sword.”

Screaming was the last reason Geoff wanted to wake up. However, it couldn’t be ignored. Also his friends practically falling out of their seats and the clang of metal weapons did not help in the slightest. 

Geoff watched in partial confusion as Jack was the first out of the doors, his hammer already grown to the size of a frying pan. Gavin had grabbed his bow and arrows out of the overhead bin. Ray swiftly equipped his trident with the last spike before letting the staff click into place.

“Get moving Geoff or you’ll miss the excitement.” Ray seemed practically giddy as he ran out behind Gavin, only to be replaced with Michael.

Geoff barely managed to stumble out of his seat and watched as Michael furiously searched through his backpack before his hand emerged with a long-ass sword, nearly hitting his tattooed friend with the pointy end.

“I thought you used a shield,” Geoff said, staring wide-eyed at the weapon.

“Shield is a one time gig. I place it and I’m stuck. That isn’t going to fly here.” Michael said quickly before dashing off after the rest of their friends.

For a moment, Geoff thought about staying behind. The last fight proved that he was practically useless. Michael had been the one to make sure Geoff knew that. All he had was this little dagger and he barely knew how to use it. The dagger was nothing compared to his companions outside who had been training a long time, Gavin aside, to fight monsters.

He was a homeless kid that got dragged off the streets kicking and screaming. Geoff could have laughed over how out of place he was.

To be honest, Geoff had been about to sit down and wait this one out when there was a gut-piercing scream.

His body suddenly switched to autopilot, pulling his dagger out of its sheathe, Geoff bolted into the hall. The sight he was met was less than ideal.

The monster automatically drew his attention. It prowled between his friends like a massive golden lion. Its long tail swung lazily in the air, armored with a fearsome stinger hanging from the end. “I am here for the failed son.” A voice hissed out, sending ice down Geoff’s back.

“Give him to me and I won’t eat all of you. Promise.” A thick accent tumbled out of the creature’s mouth. Its voice drawled lazily, as if the five demigods were simply flies to swat at. 

As Geoff stepped in the hall, his gasp seemed to echo above the noise and the creature’s face swung to meet it. The creature did not possess the face of a lion as Geoff had expected.

This monster had an utterly human face contorted into a vicious snarl. “Oh, there he is.” A pink tongue flashed out. White teeth barred down as the creature stalked toward Geoff. “Master said he wanted you alive, but there are so many demigods and whoops, I ate the wrong one.” The beast chuckled. “Mistakes happen.”

Past the monster, Geoff found the source of the screaming. Gavin had sunk to the floor, clutching his arm as he howled with pain. Michael had crouched down beside him, his stance defensive. 

Ryan was also down for the count. From this distance, the side of his face swollen and his skin slowly turned a mottled mess of red and purple. Geoff wondered silently what the fuck did he just walk into.

“Geoff, move the fuck out of the way!” Ray’s voice snapped Geoff out of his stupor just in time. The stinger at the end of the creature’s tail flicked and Geoff ducked just milliseconds before spikes embedded themselves into the wall behind him. 

The son of Poseidon appeared seemingly out of nowhere, burying the prongs of his trident into the beast’s back. However, this seemed to do nothing as the lion-man reared, knocking the demigod against a wall.

“Here kitty kitty!” Jack’s voice joined the din and Geoff spotted his further down the hall, waving his hammer like a mad man. The creature whirled around to face the bearded demigod, fur bristling. 

“I am no housecat, puny demigod!” The beast roared, his prey forgotten.

As the monster started to charge, Jack’s pitch went higher. “Oh that’s a good kitty, that’s right, chase me.”

Jack shot him a quick look before running with the monster on his heels. 

“Stopping standing there like a fucking idiot and help him. I’ve got these losers. It’s a manticore so avoid that tail at all costs.” Michael suddenly snapped, motioning after Jack. 

Geoff nodded and bolted after his monster-chased friend. For a moment, it was as if they had both disappeared. The train shifted underneath Geoff’s feet as there was a loud bang outside as thunder rolled.

Then there was the metallic clang of metal on skull. “Need some help in here!” Jack’s voice was hard to mistake.

Geoff bolted around the corner into a compartment. Jack had been backed into the corner by the manticore. The monster was reeling slightly from the hit to the head, but did not relent. 

For a moment, the beast seemed untouchable until Geoff saw its back. The prongs of Ray’s trident had done some damage, ripping three ragged holes into the manticore’s fur. 

The plan started to form. Well, twelve percent of a plan.

“Keep him distracted for a few more seconds,” Geoff yelled and saw Jack roll his eyes, but did as he was told. As the manticore swung out with the barb on its tail, Jack caught it with the head of the hammer. They were locked in place.

Geoff pulled the black box Hermes had given him out of his pocket and squeezed it tight in his right hand. Immediately, the electricity began to course through his veins and stung at his skin.

When he was a kid, Geoff had ridden a few horses. That could have never prepared him for what he was about to do. Lunging for the manticore, Geoff managed to sink his fingers into the beast’s foul-smelling fur.

The son of Zeus barely managed to straddle the beast when Jack caught sight of Geoff’s tattoos. In surprise, his grip on the hammer slackened just enough. The manticore’s barb slid away and was allowed to focus on the demigod latched onto his back.

Geoff barely noticed what happened around him. It all blurred into a single color. He was too busy hanging on for dear life. The compartment was gone and the hallway had returned, something was buried deep into his right shoulder, and his arms felt like they were melting and about to burst at the same time.

Biting the inside of his cheek, one hand gripped onto the black box and the manticore’s fur. The other plunged the dagger deep into the creature’s back in the holes Ray had made. 

Then there was instant relief as the electricity exploded from Geoff’s body and into the manticore in a burst of light. Then, Geoff hit the ground hard, yellow dust stinging his lungs. However, it wasn’t long until a blinding pain seared through his shoulder. When he reached back, in a desperate attempt to claw away the source, his hand only came back with a foul mixture of blood and dark purple poison.

“It burns,” Geoff felt the words leave his mouth like a whimper as Jack crouched down beside him. 

“I know, I know.” Jack said, trying to soothe his friend. “Get Gavin the fuck over here,” He called, to which, for a moment there was no response.

“Give me a fucking minute! I’m having a hell of a time even get Gavin to heal his fucking self.” Michael screamed.

“Everyone else on this train must think we’re insane.” Geoff muttered, giggling because a full laugh would probably only make the pain worse.

Jack’s frown deepened. “I don’t think there is anyone else on this train. It was meant to be a trap.”

“Huh,” was the only response Geoff managed to squeeze out before the world went black.

Geoff woke up. His shoulder definitely still hurt but there was a distinct lack of soul-wrenching, body-wracking, white-hot, bawl-your-eyes-out-and-cry-for-mommy pain. He was lying down on the three seats, and as he opened his eyes Ryan’s blue gaze met his.

Ryan’s face was still swollen, but the disgusting mixture of purple, yellow, and red was slowly draining from where the poison had struck him. Beside him was Gavin, still rubbing his right arm, but the purple-stone ring was around his finger. He had probably healed them both.

Ray had an icepack pressed to his head, looking sullen. “A fucking wall took me out, I mean what the fuck.” He muttered when he spotted Geoff waking up. “And Gavin’s stupid ring can’t do anything about my headache.”

“Sorry!” The brit cried, but Ray’s smirk said he didn’t mean it.

“Where are Michael and Jack?”

“You mean the I-Didn’t-Get-Hurt-Club?” Ryan said, not hiding the bitterness in his voice. “They’re out there whispering. Apparently there’s some big secret that they don’t feel like sharing.”

“Did you think this was maybe a trial?” Gavin whispered, glancing between the group. He already had his ring, as did Ryan, but Ray and Geoff were still ringless. So was Michael.

However, as Geoff’s stomach sank, he got the sickening feeling that he knew exactly what Jack and Michael were discussing. It wasn’t a trial.

Heaving himself to his feet, Geoff stumbled to the door. 

“Oi, you shouldn’t be standing you mong!” Gavin tried to protest, but Geoff waved him off.

“I’m fine. I just need to ask Jack something.”

However, before Geoff could slide the door, it opened for him. Michael’s shoulder collided with his bad one, sending waves of pain through Geoff’s body. “Watch where you’re going.” Michael snarled, sounding more hostile than usual. A white-faced Jack stood just outside.

Geoff took a few uneasy steps out of the compartment and closed the door behind him.

Jack wasted no time.

“He knows.”

Geoff swallowed against the lump in his throat. “Thought as much, is he the only one?”

Jack shrugged. “I can’t know for sure but Gavin and Ryan were preoccupied with pain. Ray was knocked out cold. I doubt any of them knew what went down. Also that new lightning trick didn’t help your case.”

“It killed the monster though,” Geoff tried feebly to defend himself, but Jack just crossed his arms and leaned against the wall with a heavy sigh.

“Michael is beyond pissed that you were keeping this secret and lying to Ryan, but he promised to keep quiet for now. Even I still don’t understand why you are making this some huge secret, but I am trusting that it’s for a good reason.”

Geoff glared down at his shoes. He desperately wanted to cross his arms, to protect his suddenly very vulnerable self, but his shoulder ached at the mere thought. “After the trial, I will tell everyone.” Geoff said quietly. “Promise.”

Jack squeezed his eyes shut and crinkled his forehead, fending off a headache. “We have three more trials, including yours. It will come out one way or another. Just make sure its from your mouth.”

The son of Zeus knew his friend was right. Then Ray’s voice rang in his head, just a few days before they began this damn quest. 

_“Delay too long and a son of the Sky King will get you. Fucking Zeus kids, they always mean trouble.”_

It was hard to find the words to explain that, ultimately, you would be the cause of your friend’s death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha, two chapters because I was on a roll. Now I go to bed.


End file.
